Chrono Guardians
by Sokai
Summary: After the Day of Lavos occurs and the planet is destroyed, the Guardians somehow find themselves back in time within the Kingdom of Guardia, where they will try to help the silent protagonist save the world . . . before all hope is lost.
1. Prologue

**Chrono Guardians**

**By: Sokai**

**Disclaimer:** I, Sokai, do not claim ownership to the workings of W.I.T.C.H. -- I leave that honor up to Elisabetta Gnone. Nor do I own the extremely kick arse classic console role-playing game, Chrono Trigger. The glory of that honor forever goes to Square Co., Ltd. However, I can and DO claim to own this story and its inspired ideas FROM said series, although original idea to cross the two worlds together came from LordofDarkness2099's story challenge.

Note: _Myyyyyy GOD . . . AGAIN? Will I EVER stick to ONE story and finish it? Yes. I DID manage with my "Requiem for a Dream" story, which surprised me. LoL But while I have every chapter in my head for my other stories that I promised to update, I just haven't had the urge/motivation to WRITE it down. I can't do it. Nada. LoL Even wrote a Cornelia/Will oneshot that I'm now too lazy/unmotivated to finish. If you'd like me to finish it and post it, though, please let me know. It's a good one. LoL_

_So, yeah! I don't think I'll finish with this one, really, because I'm motivated NOW, and probably later I won't be (and I gotta post new chapters for my other stories and will). LoL BUT! **I was cruising the W.I.T.C.H. forums a few minutes ago, and went into the one about Shippers, saw a story pairing challenge that dealt with W.I.T.C.H. and Chrono Trigger** **and romance shipping with them** and said "Why not?" Only . . . I don't think I'll bother with pairings. Well, not for EVERYONE, or as a main theme though, as **LordofDarkness2099** apparently wanted the challenge to be about. _

_So . . . um. Right! Read/don't read? Yeah. LoL  
_

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This story/prologue was created/written in October 2006.

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"Do you guys think that we'll _ever _catch a break from this Guardian gig of ours? You know, having to travel to Metamoor to take down _more_ of Phobos's _useless_ cronies in the middle of the school day? _Right _when I was about to head to gym class and see Andrew Hornby!" exhaled the curvaceous Guardian of Water, Irma Lair, after roughly wiping away beads of sweat from her brow in exhaustion.

The traditionally sarcastic and good humored brunette was now exuding a rare occurrence of agitation, as she and her best friends and fellow Guardians of the Veil had spent a good hour or so (or so it had certainly _felt_ like) battling the tyrant prince's minions he'd deployed (yet another desperate attempt to maintain his ironclad hold over the dilapidated and suffering city of Meridian).

Tossing several strands of her long river of gorgeous blonde locks over her strong shoulder as she sat tiredly upon the soft dirt ground, Cornelia Hale, the Guardian of Earth (which worked out perfectly in a way, in Irma's mind, as Cornelia was the eldest of the five and acted as a bit of a "Mother Hen" type figure on frequent occasions -- whether she was asked to or _not_), let out a loud scoff before smirking up at her comrade.

"Oh, _sure_, Irma! How about we try to storm the palace again and leave a memo with one of the guards that says: 'Please excuse Irma Lair and the other Guardians for the rest of the semester, as she has grown tired of your incessant desire to rule over the world.' Yeah, try again with _that_ one . . . Although, I wouldn't mind a bit of time off, _myself_. Have to catch up on my beauty sleep."

The smallest and youngest Guardian, the energetic as she was a bit flighty Hay Lin began to softly giggle from behind Cornelia, before using her unique power over Air to gently whisk the startled blue-eyed beauty from off of the ground and back onto her feet.

"Oh, Heaven _forbid_ Cornelia not look as _flawless_ as she _always_ does!" she stated with a bit of "Irmaesque" attitude, causing Irma to grin appreciatively and Cornelia playfully frown in the process. Given that Hay Lin was Irma's best friend, it was not at all a surprise to any of them that some of Irma's brand of humor would inevitably rub off onto the artistic girl.

The usually shy and reserved intellect, Taranee Cook (also the most fierce and strongest in an ironic twist of fate, as she was the Guardian of Fire), cheerfully chimed in as she adjusted her broad, round glasses upon her mocha tinted face with one hand and wrapped her arm around Irma's bare waist with the other.

"Honestly, _I'm_ just surprised that Irma's annoyed at the fact that she's _missing_ school -- even _if_ it's about a boy as it usually is for her. If _anything_, you'd think that she'd be jumping for _joy_ and kissing Prince Phobos's _feet _in _gratitude_," she joked with a wink at the girl next to her, before all of them erupted into a small fit of giggles (mainly induced by great fatigue more than anything else).

That is, all of them, save _one_.

The most quiet and thoughtful of the quintet, the fiery redhead, Wilhelmina "Will" Vandom, had found herself mute and suddenly trailing behind the mobile group as they headed away from the area that had been their battlefield and towards the still open portal (one of many magical pore-like rips within the Veil that separated the Earth from Metamoor that the Guardians have found, traveled through, and closed) in the distance.

Although relieved to finally be going back home to Earth after yet another successful mission to the otherworld of Metamoor, a greatly precarious feeling was eating away at her . . .

Finally, it had been Cornelia to take notice of the Keeper of the Heart of Candracar's odd behavior, as she turned around and walked over to Will with a small furrow of her delicately waxed brow.

". . . And what's the status report for _you_, young lady? Not looking forward to having to take that _dreaded_ math test of yours you'd been stressing over about all weekend?" she inquired with a stern look upon her peaches and cream visage and an air of lightheartedness within her voice.

Surprised, Will immediately looked up at the slightly taller girl and blinked her reddish-brown eyes a few times before responding.

"Huh? Oh . . . Sure . . . _I'mallreadytotakeit_ . . ." she softly responded, slurring the last of her sentence as though drunk, when in reality it was mere distraction.

Irma, whose formerly sour mood had by then completely evaporated, did an about face of her own and left Taranee and Hay Lin behind before rushing to Will's side with a broad grin plastered straight across her face.

"_Wow_! And the prize for 'most-confusing-and-_garbled_-sentence-of-the-day' goes _toooooooo_ . . ." she trailed off with a giggle, causing the others to follow suit. "Cornelia's right, though, Will. What's your _damage_? You've been pretty . . . '_off_' since arriving on campus this morning."

Offering up a small smile to her surrounding friends, Will let out a faint sigh as she stopped in her tracks.

". . . I'm _fine_, Irma; you guys. _Really_. It's just . . ." she began, unsure of how to put how she was feeling into words.

"'It's just . . .' _what_, Will?" pressed Taranee in intermingled curiosity and concern, both she and Hay Lin approaching the crimson haired teenager before them.

Frowning lightly, Will paused a moment before attempting to explain her feelings once more.

"Okay . . . it's like . . . like this . . . _nagging_ sort of feeling I've been having since last night -- but _especially_ this morning when I woke up," she murmured while running a tawny hued hand through her cardinal colored bob hairstyle. "I wish I could attach an official word or definition to it, but . . . I don't _know_. It's kind of like '_anticipation_' or something . . . like _of_ something happening . . ."

Hay Lin let out an uncharacteristic scoff at this, before beaming her patented toothy grin at her now perplexed looking friends.

"_Chyeah_! It's called 'it _just_ happened,' your '_something_,' Will! _Relax_, will you? It's probably just nerves about your test," she reassured with a wink, playfully tugging upon both of her long, glossy raven colored pigtails.

"Leave it to Hay Lin to always look on the bright side! Even on_ today_ of all days," commented Irma boisterously before resuming her walk, with the rest of the girls following close behind.

At this, Will scowled once more in confusion while summoning forth the mystical jewel, the Heart of Candracar, from out of her right palm to close the portal after they'd made it back to Earth.

"W-_wait_ a sec, Irma. Why would you say that? I mean, what's so special about _today_?" she inquired a bit anxiously, despite trying to calm her increasingly stimulated nerves.

Cornelia rolled her light blue eyes heavenward at this and took it upon herself to answer for the voluptuous Water Goddess.

"Oh, _whatever_, Irma! You've been going on _forever_ about the fact that today is 'six-six-six.' We're like, what? Already in the afternoon time of . . . _one twenty-four_, and absolutely nothing '_apocalyptic_' has happened! Nor _will _it! So just '_chillax_' with that 'end of the world' mumbo-jumbo nonsense," she scolded with a wave of her hand, after looking down at the green colored watch that was around her wrist.

Gasping in remembrance, Will's brown eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh, my _God_! That's _right_! Today _is_ June sixth, isn't it? I don't' know _how_ I'd _forgotten_! Maybe _that's_ why I'm so jumpy today . . ." she breathed, her insides churning with a faint, queasy nature as though for emphasis.

Taranee shivered uncontrollably before wrapping her bare arms around herself in comfort.

"_Eww_ . . . I guess I was too wrapped up in our battle thatI completely blanked out on my_ own_ anxiety from this _creepy_ day . . . Suddenly, I'm _missing_ Phobos's brutes," she grumbled apprehensively, turning her dread lock riddled head to gaze fearfully at the open portal crackling from behind her.

Throwing her arms up in frustration, Cornelia began to storm towards their only exit from the mystical plane of existence, while at the same time exhaling in defeat and her friends, for the most part, reluctantly followed close behind.

"Oh, not you _too_, Taranee! Nice _going_, Irma, you _blabbermouth_! **_Look_**, let's settle this once and for _all_! This whole thing with 'six-six-six' being a revelatory number is just _hearsay_! And _today_ is just a _coincidence_ -- **_besides_**, it's _technically_ 'six-six-_zero_-six,' anyway. _Whatever_! The _point_ is, nothing -- I repeat, _nothing _is going to happen to the world today!"

**-- End of Prologue**

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**(A.N. Oh, no. Did I . . . Yes. I did. I did another cliffhanger on you! Durnit! LoL I WAS going to go past this and end the prologue with more "Oh, my God"-ness, but I said nah. I'll put it in the beginning of chapter one and go from there. At least NOW, in this way, I'm more motivated to continue . . . for NOW. LoL Anyway, since I don't know what day the girls get out of school normally each year is, I said they'd still be in school by this time. When I was in middle/high school, myself, I had classes until June 20-something, so yeah. Thank GOD for college, in that respect . . . Out by May 10, usually. :Dances: LoL As for the time that Cornelia stated, I did that on purpose. Because while the day was never stated and only the year, 1999 A.D. that "Day of Lavos" occurred, the time was. Which, obviously, was 1:24 p.m. But I said, why not 6/6/06 instead to be more "Oooh . . . Creepy" about it since '99's long gone. LoL MAN, now I gotta go play the game. LoL I LOVE that freaking game, AND C.C. Anyway, stay tuned for the next chapter/episode/whatever. LoL Might change the story name cuz I don't really like it, but wanted it to be a hybrid of both series. Meh. 'Bye! LoL)**


	2. Chapter 1: The Millennial Fair 1000 AD

**Chapter 1: The Millennial Fair (1000 A.D.)**

**By: Sokai**

**Disclaimer:** I, Sokai, do not claim ownership to the workings of W.I.T.C.H. -- I leave that honor up to Elisabetta Gnone. Nor do I own the extremely kick arse classic console role-playing game, Chrono Trigger. The glory of that honor forever goes to Square Co., Ltd. However, I can and DO claim to own this story and its inspired ideas FROM said series, although the original idea to cross the two worlds together came from LordofDarkness2099's story challenge.

Note: _This is fun. LoL You know, writing about one of my most favorite games of all time. A good thing I know and have played the game inside out a billion times over. Makes MY life a lot easier when writing the familiar scenes (so don't come at me and be all "Hey! They said this!" cuz duh-UH. I know LoL). Just gotta insert the Guardians where appropriate. Squee. LoL Anyway, um . . . enjoy? Yeah. LoL_

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This chapter was created/written in October 2006.

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"You _see_? I _told_ you that there'd be absolutely --" began a momentarily triumphant Cornelia as she and the remaining Guardians emerged from the portal, before letting out a sharp gasp at the horrific and unexpected sight that lay before her. ". . . nothing to worry about . . ." 

Both Hay Lin and Taranee simultaneously cried out in fierce alarm after moving to stand on either side of the now catatonic blonde, while Irma's mesmerizing, and traditionally vibrant turquoise colored eyes widened and instantly became drained of all life.

_Will_, however (after somehow managing to close the portal that had been sparking behind her, despite the trauma she was now beginning to feel), was apparently the only one who still had enough wits about her to verbalize everyone's unanimous thoughts.

". . . W . . . What's _happened_? Guys, what's happened to Heatherfield?" she exclaimed in mortification, as she rushed forth from the back alleyway of their hometown of Heatherfield that the five of them were now in.

Debris and small, random fires littered the once familiar streets that was one block away from their private school, Sheffield Institute. The weather, previously warm and sunny before the quintet had left for Metamoor, was now brutally cold and supremely darkened, as thick black clouds endlessly blanketed themselves over the sun while heavy ash steadily fell forth from the sky.

As tremendously troubling a sight the Guardians' new scenery was to behold, it was perhaps the eerie observation that there did not seem to be any signs of life from anywhere -- animal nor _human_ . . .

Hay Lin, the most emotionally fragile of the five, could no longer support her own weight and suddenly collapsed to the ground and retched violently, while tears welled up within both Taranee's and Irma's eyes.

"Th . . . this _can't_ be Heatherfield . . . W-will, _please_ tell me that you somehow inadvertently opened up another portal without realizing, and we're now in some unknown dimension! _Please_!" cried Taranee as she turned her attention to the startled redhead, whose brown eyes widened in continued disbelief at the wreckage surrounding them all.

"Oh, God . . . Oh, _God _. . ." was all Irma could manage to muster in numb shock in the meanwhile, staring blankly at the crumpled form of Hay Lin still grievously vomiting onto the destroyed ground beneath her.

Will, trying her best to keep her maintain a steady mind within the midst of the Guardians' dire crisis, could only raise a weak, shaky hand to point ahead of her.

". . . I . . . We _are_ home, Taranee . . . _look_ . . ." she whispered in astonishment, while the frazzled African American young woman and the still mute Caucasian blonde managed to pry themselves from their spots to see what had their leader so spooked.

There, in the fairly far although still visible distance, was their formerly well kept school, now nothing more than burning rubble. The familiar bright green sign that read "Sheffield Institute" now lay, demolished beyond repair, upon the ashen ground.

Hay Lin, at last completely and deplorably emptied of her insides, coughed uncontrollably before barely managing to speak.

". . . O . . . our _families_! My Mom and Dad! Y . . . you _guys_! We _have_ to go find them! _All_ of them!" she shrieked through the rapidly flowing tears that streamed down her saffron tinted cheeks.

At long last, Cornelia managed to jostle herself from out of her torpid-like state, and with an obviously heavy, heartbroken air softly murmured,

". . . I don't think we'll be able to find them, Hay Lin -- _anyone_ . . . because I think, for once, Irma was right . . ."

At this, Irma whirled around in her spot and with a sonorous, sorrowful cry roughly slapped the now taken aback blonde straight across her face.

"_No_! Don't you _dare_ finally agree with me on something, Cornelia!" she spat angrily, her own tears at last falling free from her extremely bloodshot eyes, as Cornelia's creamy cheeks grew hot and red from the blow. "Not _today_, not _now_ and about all things! This is _not_ the end of the world, and our families _are_ still alive and out there somewhere!"

The chaos continually surrounding the magically blessed women seemed to fuel the inner turmoil growing within each of them, as after Irma's violent outburst, none of them could muster up enough strength within themselves to speak -- _nor_ face the undeniable truth that something profusely cataclysmic had occurred during their absence.

Several seconds had elapsed into several minutes before the dreadful silence was finally broken.

". . . Well, we can't obviously stay _here _forever, because whomever -- _what_ever did this . . . could very well come back," said Will softly, turning on her heel at the same time that she closed her eyes to summon forth the Heart of Candracar from out of her palm once again.

Choosing to stay as far away from a still fuming and traumatized Irma as possible, Cornelia slowly moved to Hay Lin's side, and with Taranee's assistance helped the skinny girl from off of the soiled ground.

"But . . . where are we going to go, Will? Back to _Metamoor_? We're not exactly any safer _there_ than we are _here_," commented Cornelia quietly, her light blue eyes beginning to sting and tear up more so from the Water Temptress's physical strike than from the continued shock of the area's -- and quite possibly, the _world's_ -- newfound predicament.

"B . . . Besides, we can't just leave whomever might still be . . ." whimpered Taranee, unable to finish her point, as the mere thought of trying to face the great possibility that her beloved family was no longer alive would undoubtedly destroy her.

Will slowly shook her head, as the mystical Heart elegantly floated in front of her expectantly. Her face grew contorted with the obvious struggle to take the next, correct course of action, knowing that, as the other girls' leader, they would ultimately have to follow whatever decision Will made.

_If I just had more **time** . . . If I knew what caused this . . ._ the crimson haired female began to think in desperation, squeezing her honey brown eyes shut.

It was at that moment that Will suddenly felt her right palm begin to tingle and itch uncontrollably as it still remained extended beneath the hovering Heart of Candracar.

"W-_what_ the --! _Will_, the _Heart_! I-it's changing _color_!" Will heard Irma suddenly cry out from behind her, startling the redhead and causing her to open her eyes in alarm.

Sure enough, the traditionally blue, clear spherical orb was now resonating with a fierce whiteness that easily blinded the quintet, as all of them struggled to gaze upon its sudden brilliance.

Before any of them could properly react, the five Guardians of the Veil abruptly felt their bodies being effortlessly lifted from off of the ground and violently drawn in towards the swirling, deep blue vortex that had mysteriously appeared before them . . . away from the destruction and into the unknown . . .

**.§.§.§.§.**

A small gaggle of elegant, snow white doves gracefully soared high within the sky over a peaceful looking kingdom known as Guardia. Down below, several rounds of breathtaking fireworks were going off and straight up into the sky at the same instant that lyrical bells began to sound.

Today, as was every _other_ day, traditionally, was one of peace within the Guardia Kingdom. _However_, this day was one of great importance, as grand festivities -- a _carnival_, to be more precise, was commencing to celebrate the current new year of 1000 A.D . . .

Everyone within the entire kingdom would most certainly be in attendance to partake in the wonderful merrymaking, as it was a truly joyous occasion.

And yet, _despite_ this, however, all but one individual -- a _boy_ -- still remained, asleep, within his bed in his home village of Truce.

"Crono . . ." the spiky redheaded young man could hear his own name being faintly called as he continued on within his slumber. "_Crono_!"

At this, the young teenager known as Crono stirred awake, cracking one clear blue eye open to see that his mother, Gina, was standing at the foot of his bed with a broad smile spread across her fair visage.

"Good morning, Crono! Come on, sleepy head! Get _up_!" she urged cheerfully, playfully tapping her son's blanketed foot before heading to open his curtains.

"Ah, Leene's Bell makes _such_ beautiful music!" Gina gushed with a happy sigh as she stood before Crono's window, taking in the warm rays of yet another beautiful Guardia morning, while her son immediately covered his head to shelter his sensitive eyes from the bright light. "You were so excited about the Millennial Fair that you didn't sleep well, did you . . .? I want you to behave yourself today! Let's get moving, _now_!"

As Gina, with the same happy smile still secured upon her face, walked down the stairs and out of his bedroom, Crono slowly rose from out of his bed. Stretching out all of his limber limbs and thankfully already dressed (as he truly _had_ been too excited about the fair the previous night, that he'd decided to sleep within the clothes he would wear out to save time), he groggily walked over to his window and closed the curtains, as his eyes still hadn't yet adjusted to the addition of light pouring into his formerly dark room.

Turning his crimson head to the left, Crono noticed that his pet cat's food bowl was empty and made a mental note to be sure to buy some more before returning home. Doing an about face, Crono began to head towards the stairs, when he abruptly turned back around and reopened the curtains, deciding it best to _leave_ it open lest his mother get upset later on after finding them closed once more.

"_Finally_!" Crono's brunette mother exhaled in playful exasperation the moment she caught sight of him coming down the stairs and into the kitchen where she was. "By the way, that inventor friend of yours . . . Uh . . . _you_ know . . .! Oh, dear, I've forgotten her _name_!"

Crono playfully rolled his blue eyes heavenward and smirked at yet another one of his mother's frequent scatterbrain moments, before tiredly murmuring the name of his childhood friend.

"_That's_ right, _Lucca_!" said Gina as she listened to Crono reveal the name of the young woman in question. A faint rouge caressed her cheeks in embarrassment at the fact that she had been unable to recall the name of one who had been her son's companion since near infancy. "Don't forget that she invited you to see her new invention! Run along now, and be back before dinner."

Crono crouched down onto the floor to play with his Tabby feline friend that had then caught sight of him, as his mother moved towards the sink to wash a few leftover dishes from the previous night. Stroking his pet's furry back a few times, causing it to purr in happy gratitude, Crono stood back up and headed towards the door to leave, when his mother suddenly called after him.

"Oh, I almost _forgot_! Here's your allowance, dear!" said Gina with a warm smile, reaching into the pocket of the white apron draped around her mango colored dress and handed her son a small pouch filled with approximately two hundred gold pieces. "Have fun at the fair!"

Nodding in acknowledgment, Crono hurriedly stuffed the money pouch into the pocket of his light pea colored, vaguely baggy pants, headed out of the door and made his way to Leene Square, where the fair was being held.

"Welcome to the Millennial Fair! Have fun!" said an old man at the front entrance of the square as soon as he had Crono within his sights upon his arrival several minutes later. Crono could only offer up a small smile as a reply, for within seconds _of_ arriving, he'd found himself feeling overwhelmed, as he did not know which activity of those many displayed around him to partake in first.

However, after managing to regain his composure and saying hello to the several familiar faces he'd already seen, the young redhead decided it best to simply make his way around the square in a clockwise fashion.

After collecting a total of forty-one "Silver Points," that he could apparently redeem for actual gold, from the various games and contests (that either consisted of hitting a bell as high up as possible; guzzling down soda faster than other participating contestants; duking it out with one of Lucca's inventions, a robot named Gato; and guessing the correct winner of a footrace), Crono at last decided to meet up with his intellectual best friend in the northern most most part of the Square.

Heading up the stairs, Crono carefully placed his Silver Points earnings into his other, free pocket right as he about to pass beneath the old, large bronze bell named Leene's Bell, named after the gracious and fair Queen Leene who kindly ruled Guardia back in the year 600 A.D.

Perhaps it was because he'd been too busy fumbling with his pocket to have paid proper attention, for before Crono could properly react he suddenly found himself bumping into something hard, causing him to fall over in the process.

"_Hey_! Ouch, that _hurt_!" cried a voice that sounded strongly female, at the same moment that Leene's Bell mysteriously began to ring.

Crono rubbed the back of his head sorely as he slowly sat up from his spot upon the ground, and took in the sight of a young woman, seemingly around his age, dressed in a white, bare shouldered top and slightly baggy pants rising from the ground, herself.

Clearly, _she_ had been the "something hard" he had accidentally collided with.

As the melodic ringing of the majestic bell overhead at last died down, the turquoise-eyed young girl lightly shook her blonde pony tailed head while dusting herself off, before taking notice of Crono rising to his feet.

"I'm so _sorry_!" she gushed apologetically, rushing to his side. "Are you okay? _Uh_ oh . . . My _pendant_! Oh, _no_! Don't tell me I _lost_ it."

Crono narrowed his blue eyes as he allowed them to travel away from the now frantic girl pacing back and forth around the area to locate her lost jewelry, and immediately rested them upon said pendant lying directly before him.

Pausing a moment as he continued to watch the young blonde bite at her fingernails while at the same time trying to find her property, Crono moved from his spot and picked up the pearl colored amulet and returned it to her.

"Oh, thank _goodness_! My _pendant_! It has a lot of sentimental value!" explained the girl in gratitude, gazing down at the glittery jewel within Crono's strong hand. "May I have it back?"

Scratching the back of his bright red head, Crono gave a small shrug before handing over the girl's pendant, receiving a broad smile from her as a result.

After placing the pendant back onto her person, the gentlewoman cleared her throat before speaking once more.

"I came to see the Festival! You . . . live in this town, _don't_ you?" she inquired a bit shyly all of a sudden, idly kicking at the ground with her brown sandaled foot. "I feel a little out of place here. Would you mind if I walked around with you for a while?"

Thinking a moment, as he remembered that he _had_ been on his way to see Lucca before _literally_ running into this newcomer, Crono nonetheless gave a swift reply of "Sure." After all, it was not every day that he'd met such an admittedly alluring young woman.

And _clearly_, the girl was just as excited as Crono was, for she suddenly began to jump up and down for joy at his response.

"You're a _true_ gentleman!" she exclaimed, her peaches and cream complexion growing pink with faint embarrassment at her briefly infantile-like behavior. "Oh, by the way . . . My name is, er . . . um, _Marle_! And _you're_?"

Crono thought it a bit curious that the girl apparently known as Marle had to take a few moments to recall her own name, but said nothing about it as he instead told her his own.

"Crono? What a nice name!" complimented Marle exuberantly, extending out her delicate hand for the young man to shake. "Pleased to meet you! Now, lead on!"

For the following half an hour, Crono ended up backtracking as he escorted the bubbly and friendly Marle around the square, showing her the various activities and contests he himself had participated in earlier. Truth be told, he did not at all mind that he was now running behind schedule in meeting Lucca, as he got to show off some of his skills to impress the young woman (which, _thankfully_, he seemed to be doing, judging by Marle's various bouts of positive reinforcement every time he would win a new prize for her).

After once again winning the footrace bet, Crono had then decided that it was time he and Marle finally went to check out Lucca's latest invention.

"Hold your _horses_! I want to get some candy," said Marle suddenly, as Crono began to lead the way back up the stairs towards the back of the square. Blinking in surprise, he slowly nodded as he followed the energetic female back down and towards a small concession stand at the base of the stairs filled with sweets.

After waiting for a few minutes, with Marle having yet to make any sort of decision on which treat she wanted, Crono began to grow a bit impatient -- and it showed upon his face.

"Give me just a _second_!" assured Marle after taking notice of the man's facial expression, idly waving her hand.

Biting down upon his lip, Crono merely nodded before folding his arms across his chest and continued to wait. After yet _another_ several minutes had passed without a purchase being made, Crono ran one hand through his spiky, fiery locks and gently tugged at Marle's arm with the other.

_This_ act did _not_ bode well for the blonde, as she turned around to face her new friend with inquisitive eyes and said,

"There's no need to _drag_ me by the arm like some _kidnapper_!"

Jumping in surprise at this, Crono gave a swift apology and allowed his friend to continue perusing the assorted treats.

"I'd like some of _this_," said Marle at long last to the lady standing patiently behind the stand.

"Sure, young lady," replied the vendor with a smile, as she took Marle's money and handed over to her her sugary treat.

"Thanks for waiting!" said Marle appreciatively to Crono as she turned to face him with a small smile upon her face and her candy within her hands.

Nodding, Crono cleared his throat and suggested the two of them hurry and head back up the stairs to see Lucca's display.

The moment the pair had arrived onto the scene, they were met with a fairly decent sized crowd of curious onlookers, peering upon what looked like . . . some sort of two separate teleportation platforms. Crouched in front of one of them, presumably tinkering around with the device, was a young woman dressed in mostly mocha colored clothing that Crono immediately recognized to be his best friend, Lucca Ashtear.

He had, of course, left for the fair with the preconceived notion that whatever his _extremely_ sagacious comrade had planned to unveil for the festivities, it would _undoubtedly_ be _vastly_ impressive -- as all her past inventions generally tended to be. However, _nothing_ had prepared Crono for _this_ astronomical sight.

It appeared as though, _this_ time, the brilliant female inventor had completely outdone herself.

Standing in front of his daughter's invention, beckoning the crowd to come closer, was Lucca's robust and supportive father, Taban. As always, there was a broad, proud smile spread clear across his tawny hued face in regards to his daughter's continued achievements, as he opened his mouth to introduce the device to the anxious and slightly weary crowd.

"Step right on up, any of you who have the time _and _the _courage_!" he began boisterously, extending both of his hefty arms out on either side of him. "Our 'Super Dimension Warp' is the invention of the _century_!"

Crono's blue eyes began to give the now faintly murmuring crowd at this announcement a once over, while Marle gave a small gasp of impressed surprise and unconsciously began to stand on her tippy toes to get a better look at the awesome machine in the distance.

"To use it, jump up here . . ." continued Taban, pausing for dramatic effect as he motioned his right hand toward the platform on his right and the crowd's left, ". . . and you'll get teleported _here_! It's the masterwork of my _beautiful _daughter, Lucca."

While the majority of the onlookers gave several nods of acknowledgment and obvious excitement to witness the supposed teleportation device in action, Crono regrettably overheard a small trio of a little boy, elderly man and young woman begin to speak a bit ill of his good friend.

"Check out that girl's _glasses_!" breathed the little boy in amazement, rudely pointing ahead of him towards Lucca, who had then turned her unique-looking cap covered head (that concealed the majority of her medium length, magenta colored locks) to look upon the other platform she was not double checking. From the distance, Crono was unable to make out the familiar sight of the girl's inquisitive pale blue gems, as the day's beautiful sun rays were too bright and reflected against her broad, round optical lens.

Crono folded his arms across his chest and frowned in disapproval of the young boy's comments and was about to say so, when the old man next to him had then began to chime in with his _own_ distasteful "two-cents."

"She could probably see the back side of the_ moon_ with those," he wheezed out a bit triumphantly, although proud of himself to have been able to come up with what he _obviously_ perceived to be such a clever zinger.

The young woman, who had been a part of the boy and the man's little makeshift soirée, suddenly gave a dismissive wave of her hand towards Lucca's metallic contraption and said underneath her breath with a tired air,

"Lucca's inventions _never _work right."

Crono had been so focused upon the townspeople's' various conversations that he hadn't even noticed that Taban had been sweeping the crowd to find volunteers for his daughter's masterpiece before approaching him.

"Give it a try, kid?" he asked cheerfully, before giving a light chuckle after the realization set in as to whom he was speaking. ". . . Oh, it's _you_, Crono!"

At this, hearing her father mention her best friend's name, Lucca immediately craned her head around to look at Crono.

"_Crono_! Where have you _been_?" she demanded a bit feverishly, taking on her usual bossy, yet playful nature with her male friend as she swiftly approached him. "No one wants to try the Telepod! How about _you_?"

As Crono was about to open his mouth to object to the idea, Marle, who had up until that moment been so continually enraptured by the great device before them, suddenly interjected gleefully.

"It looks like _fun_!" she said, gently pushing the redhead towards the machine. "I'll watch while you try it out!"

Lucca nodded her magenta hued head in agreement as she walked over to the left platform.

"Just hop onto the left pod!" she instructed, waving her hand while she stood upon it in demonstration, before stepping off of it.

Taban, obviously sensing Crono's growing apprehension to the idea, gave a hearty slap upon the boy's back and grinned.

"Don't worry, we tried it on our pets!" he tried to reassure, although failing miserably, as Crono did not at _all_ take comfort in the fact that Lucca's machine had yet to be tested upon more _evolved_ mammals. "There's no reason why it shouldn't work as well on _humans_! So, step right _up_!"

Heaving a defeated sigh, Crono nodded slowly as he mustered up a bit more nerve and stepped onto the left pod as previously instructed. He watched in apprehensive curiosity as Taban moved over to the pod and flipped on a switch of some sort, while Lucca replaced herself back over to the right pod and began to receive a few electrical sparks as a result of whatever she was doing at the same moment.

"All systems on!" called Taban to his daughter, while she continued to fiercely pump away at the pod in front of her.

"Begin energy transfer!" she ordered, right before Crono heard a loud crackling and popping sound of lightning behind him, and he suddenly felt his body tingling uncontrollably. Before he could even react, the electrical sparks that had been whirling in front of Lucca seemed to jump or transfer over to Crono's pod where he stood, and in an instant his body erupted into several bluish white orbs.

The entire crowd let out a large, surprised and even _impressed_ gasp as they witnessed the heavenly orbs hover over the left pod for a few seconds, before immediately vanishing and reappearing directly over the _right_ pod.

Marle jumped for joy as she and everyone else watched as Crono's corporeal form began to reappear in the midst of the twinkling lights.

"Oh wow. That was _great_!" cried the crowd unanimously at this, absolutely mind boggled that Lucca had been successful in teleporting the young man from one point to another, unharmed.

"So, how was it?" inquired Lucca with a small but triumphant grin forming upon her slightly tanned face, as she watched Crono shakily climb down from the right pod. "Want to try it again?"

Crono gave his friend a slightly mortified expression to the invite, while Taban, despite his continued boasting about his daughter's unique mechanism, was truly flabbergasted at that moment.

"It . . . _worked_?" he bellowed in amazement, eyes practically popping from out of his head and his dirty blonde hair slightly standing on end. "**_I can't believe it_**!"

Realizing that the crowd -- _and_ his daughter were now all peering upon him with great perplexity, the middle aged man gruffly cleared his throat and tried to recompose himself before stating,

"Uh, er, a _thrilling_ display of science at its _best_, ladies and gentlemen!"

"I guess even _her_ inventions have to work, _sometimes_," commented the same young woman from before with genuine surprise before leaving, at the same time that the old man next to her breathed out a rather loud "Wow!"

Rushing forward as more of the gathering began to disperse, Marle let out an extremely affected giggle and said,

"What a _kick_! **_I_** want to try it, too!"

Now it was Lucca's turn to be caught off guard, as she turned her attention away from the still rattled Crono and onto the exuberant blonde standing before her, properly focusing upon her this time around.

"Huh? Hey Crono, how did you pick up a _cutie_ like _her_?" she queried teasingly, lightly nudging her friend's side as the two of them watched Marle head towards the left pod.

"Hang on, Crono!" she said with a smile and energetic wave, "I'll be _right_ there!"

"Behold, ladies and gentlemen," implored Taban to the remaining group of people still eyeballing Lucca's invention, "as this vision of loveliness steps aboard the machine!"

Marle gave a quick wink of her turquoise eye and stated confidently,

"Don't go away. I'll be right back!"

Taban, obviously still feeling a bit frazzled by the machine's capabilities, lightly whispered to the waiting blonde,

"You're _sure_ about this . . .? There's still time to change your mind!"

However, Marle would hear none of it as she immediately shook her head rapidly, causing her golden ponytail to wag back and forth feverishly in the process.

"No _way_! Throw the switch!" she demanded happily, clasping both of her hands behind her back after finally placing herself onto the platform.

Sighing lightly, Taban once more cleared his throat as he turned away from Marle and back towards the smaller assemblage.

"Okay, everyone, let's give her a _great_ big hand when she reappears!"

While it had been truly impressive, what he _himself_ had just experienced, Crono secretly did not envy Marle to be going up there to be "teleported," herself. Then again, perhaps he simply had a weaker stomach than she did.

In _either _case, it was obvious that, no matter _what_ the outcome, Marle would undoubtedly find the experience riveting.

Once again did Taban take his place in front of the left pod to turn on the switch, while Lucca proceeded to charge the _right_ pod.

"All systems on!" her father informed for the second time, Crono stepping back a bit to avoid the electrical sparks that were already beginning to form at his right.

"Begin energy transfer!" instructed Lucca without bothering to look up, feeling confident that her invention would of course not fail her.

Had she peered up for a second, however, the young inventor would have been able to take notice that something _terribly_ wrong was beginning to occur where Marle anxiously stood.

Marle's milky white visage immediately crinkled into one of great weary as she felt her chest grow warm.

"What's happening?" she called out in alarm, peering down to see that the pendant she had momentarily lost was now beginning to glow fiercely. "My pendant . . . it's . . ."

Before anyone could react, Marle suddenly felt herself being violently lifted from off of the pod and into the air, her body spinning in a circular motion at the same time that a mysterious blue portal opened up from behind her.

It was then that Lucca, too previously engulfed in her concentration to have the machine work properly, finally looked up, just in time to witness the tomboyish female being sucked harshly into the portal's bowels before closing after her.

The only thing left in her stead was her mystifying pendant . . .

"Huh?" was all Lucca could utter, for once at a loss for words as the perplexity at what she had just witnessed was too great. Her teleportation device began to overheat just then, causing Taban, Crono and herself to swiftly back away from it.

"Lucca! Where is she?" cried Taban in fearful consternation, rushing over to his daughter's side before turning his attention to the startled crowd. "Show's over, folks! Let's head along now!"

After successfully ushering everyone away from the chaotic scene, Taban moved back over to Lucca to confront her once more, she, Crono and himself the only ones still within the area.

"What's going on Lucca? **_Where is she_**?"

Lucca, undeterred by her father's sudden and uncharacteristically forceful nature, immediately began to analyze the situation.

"The way she disappeared . . . It _couldn't _have been the Telepod!" she rationalized with relative self assurance, readjusting the glasses on her deep scowling face. "The warp field seemed to be affected by her pendant . . ."

Choosing to bypass his daughter's brief explanation and theory on what could have happened to the missing blonde, Taban instead heatedly asked,

"What are we going to do _now_?"

"She's so_ familiar_! I _know_ I've seen her _somewhere_ . . ." murmured Lucca to herself as she continued to ponder the situation at hand, clearly ignoring her father's anxious inquiry.

After pacing around the area for several minutes, Lucca appeared to have reached some sort of epiphany, for she suddenly whirled around in her spot and pointed a slender finger at the silent, although worried young redhead.

"Crono!" she called, startling her friend in the process, "You brought her here, _you_ get her back!"

Blue eyes widening in surprise at the moderate accusation that the current debacle was _his_ fault, Crono lightly frowned as he began to mull it over. Even though he hadn't the faintest idea of how it had all occurred in the _first_ place, it _was _true that he did in fact bring his new friend along to see Lucca's invention, making him feel slightly at fault for the whole mess.

And so, without really giving it further thought, Crono made his way over to the left pod and bent down to pick up the discarded pendant.

"Crono!" gasped Lucca in complete surprise, obviously not having expected to see the young man doing as she'd instructed, even though she _had_ been the one to suggest it at all.

"You're _actually_ going to _do_ it?" asked Taban in astonishment, he too clearly taken aback by the crimson haired teenager's actions. "What a _fine_ lad!"

Not wanting to waste another second of precious time, Lucca then rushed back over to her place in front of the right pod, as she began to bestow upon the lone young man standing onto the other pod a bit of dire words that did absolutely _nothing _to calm his growing nerves.

"_Listen_! I don't know where this machine is going to send you, but we haven't any other _choice_," she revealed quietly, fully aware that saying such a thing while in the face of possible danger was not precisely the most logical of moves.

_However_, she was _also _just as much aware as Crono that they truly did _not_ have any other choice, if they wanted to find and bring back Marle safely.

"Won't they _both_ be lost?" Taban asked the question that had been burning a hole straight through each of their tongues to verbalize.

Despite this, however, Lucca forced herself to put on a determined resolve and pushed aside any sort of doubt as she motioned for her father to help her with the energy transfer.

"This is our _only_ hope!" she stated firmly, before turning her attention onto the patiently awaiting Crono. "That _pendant_ seems to be the _key_, so hang on to it Crono, and _brace_ yourself!"

And with that, both Lucca and her father began the rigorous task of recharging the teleportation contraption, to the point where it would be enough to hopefully trigger another reaction out of the pendant and send Crono to wherever Marle had ultimately ended up.

"Power to _full_!" ordered Lucca over the increasingly loud noise, receiving a nod and reply from her father.

"_Roger_!"

Shaking her cap covered head, Lucca frowned and poked a bit of her tongue out of the corner of her mouth in frustration after shouting,

"_More_! Give me more _power_!"

Now sweating vigorously at this point, Taban could only muster another "Roger!" in reply to his daughter's demands, before the machine at last began to short out much in the same fashion that it had when Marle had been upon it.

Letting out a satisfied cry, Lucca swiftly wiped away a few beads of her _own _perspiration away from her brow as she and her father gazed up at the same eerie, blue portal swirling behind the now taken aback Crono.

"_There_! We _did_ it! I'll follow you after I know what went wrong. _Good luck_, Crono!"

Taking a deep, steady breath, Crono nodded firmly in acknowledgment at his friend's best wishes, before swallowing down his nerves and headed straight into the portal . . . and _even_ perhaps straight into possible _danger_.

**-- End of Chapter 1**

* * *

**(A.N. YES! Thank you, merciful GOD! LoL Finished. Phew. That was fun but wasn't to do the whole fair scene. Of course, obviously, I just followed the game script and added in more detail and what I personally remember from playing it – haven't in a while, though, cuz my SNES is packed away and I never bothered to buy the PS version yet. But, hey, a classic kick arse game like THIS one, you do NOT forget about. LoL Also thought it'd be a real "kick," as Marle said, to have Crono behave like and do as I usually made him whenever I'D play it. You know, the whole play with the curtains in his bedroom once you gain control of 'em, look at the catfood bowl that's empty, play with the cat as it walks around you before you leave the house, and pull on Marle's arm to get her to say that whole kidnapper bit so I can have witnesses say that once I got back from 600 A.D. Fun times. LoL**

**ANYWAY! So right, I'd started and pretty much finished this whole thing last night, but I ended up getting sidetracked and then bored so stopped. LoL But that's okay, cuz I haven't received any new reviews since then, so obviously no one was anxious to read on. LoL And before you ask "Where are the Guardians? I thought this was a X'over!" Duh. Oui, c'est vrai. However, you'll have to wait and see in chapter 2 to see where they ended up in the whole time loop thingie. LoL TRUST me, while I AM going to follow the game's original plot/script, it will still be kinda original in my OWN right, since I will include the Guardians and alter a few scenes and create new ones. No worries!  
**

**Oh, yeah. A few more things, so you won't bother to come at me with it. 1, I know that you were only allowed 20 S.P.'s at one time, which sucked, LoL, but I said Crono won a total of 41 because, if he'd tried every activity and was successful, that's how much it'd be. And no, I didn't make up Lucca's last name, those of you who did not play "Chrono Cross." "Ashtear" is indeed her last name. Oh, and Crono's mom's name IS Gina. At least, in the Japanese version, it is. So I just went with it. Thanx! LoL)**


	3. Chapter 2: The Queen Returns 600 AD

**Chapter 2: The Queen Returns (600 A.D. first time)**

**By: Sokai**

**Disclaimer:** I, Sokai, do not claim ownership to the workings of W.I.T.C.H. -- I leave that honor up to Elisabetta Gnone. Nor do I own the extremely kick arse classic console role-playing game, Chrono Trigger. The glory of that honor forever goes to Square Co., Ltd. However, I can and DO claim to own this story and its inspired ideas FROM said series, although the original idea to cross the two worlds together came from LordofDarkness2099's story challenge.

Note:_ I know what you're figuring: "Dude, I've played the game and know what happens, so why bother reading?" In way, I suppose you're right. But like I said, not everything I'll write will be exact -- that is, how it is in the game. I plan on putting in as many A.U. curve balls as possible, now that the Guardians are involved. But, whatever._

* * *

This chapter was created/written in October 2006.

* * *

After having traveled through the unique and deep blue, gateway-like portal for what felt like ages, Crono at last rapidly approached a blinding white light, right before tumbling out of the portal and . . . back _home_? 

Blinking his blue eyes while trying to collect his bearings, the redhead began to wonder if perhaps all Lucca's transferral contrivance had managed to do was transport him outside of Leene Square, and onto the mountain pass that was on the outskirts of Guardia Castle. If that _was_ the case, then perhaps the same had occurred to _Marle_, who might have been on her way back home by then even.

It certainly _looked_ familiar to Crono, the wooded environment that now surrounded him . . . although, admittedly, the scenery _did_ seem as though it had somehow changed substantially. Before he could further ponder the notion, Crono had suddenly found himself being ambushed by . . . _blue imps_?

True, Crono had been studying the art of combat for the past several months, so that he could then later try to become a royal guard to the Guardia Royal Family. _However_, he wasn't exactly well prepared (nor well _equipped_, for _that_ matter, given that he only had the wooden stick that he'd used to practice fighting within his possession) to try to defend himself at that moment . . . _and_ against _monsters_ of all things.

He had heard stories while growing up, from some of his fellow Truce Villagers, that there indeed existed monsters that lurked about upon the other surrounding islands, as _well_ as within some of the forests. _Regardless_, Crono had never truly put much stock into anything that had been said, figuring them to be nothing more than mere fairytale.

_Now_, however, with his nerves flaring up as he frantically eyeballed the minuscule, yet _fierce_-looking creatures immediately surrounding him, Crono supremely wished that the stories truly _had _been nothing more than fantasy . . .

Before Crono could properly react, two of the three imps present had already closed in upon him, while only _one_ of them gave a harsh, swift kick to his shin. Although in great pain, Crono was now, at that moment, feeling more _aggravated_ than afraid, and so with all of his might swung and brought down his wooden sword onto the two imps before him, gravely wounding them.

Crono let out a sharp gasp in surprise, obviously not expecting to be so strong and manage to inflict damage with his mere stick of a weapon. However, he certainly _had_, for the two crippled imps, shrieking in agony, managed to drag their injured bodies away from the looming redhead, at the same instant that the third and _physically_ unaffected imp suddenly decided it best to flee from the scene.

Raising both eyebrows in amazement at the display, Crono lightly smirked to himself as he sheathed his wooden sword and watched until the imps retreated completely back up the mountain pass. Confident that they would not return, he swiftly began to jog down the carved out, winding path down the mountain side and towards what he assumed would be the exit.

Crono took in a deep breath of fresh air, then roughly exhaled it in relief to be out of there and back within Truce Village. Nonetheless, the nagging feeling that something was not right -- was _different_, continued to plague him, _despite _the acquainted setting.

Deciding he had better meet back up with Lucca to see if Marle hadn't yet returned to Leene Square on her own, Crono began to make his way toward the area, when he noticed that only a plethora of trees stood in its place.

Gasping in alarm, Crono frantically tried to understand what was going on, and how in such a short amount of time an entire forest could have erected itself in place of where the Square _should_ have been.

Lightly pulling at his spiky red locks, the young man swiftly turned around and began a fast sprint towards his village to see if maybe the townspeople could shed some light onto things. Knocking onto the door of the nearest Truce residence, Crono spilled into the room, and in between heavy gasps inquired about the missing Millennial Fair to the individuals he admittedly did not recognize.

"A _Millennial _Fair? _Here_? What _are_ you talking about?" asked the woman who had let Crono inside of her home in reply, a severely perplexed look plastered onto her face. "It's the year _600_, and the 21st King of Guardia reigns."

Now it was _Crono's_ turn to be riddled with immense consternation, as the gentlewoman's explanation did not at _all_ make any amount of sense.

The year _600_? _Twenty-first_ king of Guardia? That could notbe right. It could _not_ be. Perhaps the woman before him had merely taken a blow to the head, after a run in of her _own_ with those nasty imps back within the mountain pass.

Swallowing hard, Crono shook his head repeatedly before beginning to explain that the year was _not_ 600, but _1000_, and that today marked the celebration of continued peace throughout the kingdom.

"We've been at war for _years_," gravely said a young man, seated at a table within the corner, in contest, causing both Crono and the woman to veer their riled up attention onto him. "_When_ will it _end_?"

Mouth held open agape, Crono shook his head once more as he began to back away from the pair, before abruptly turning on his heel and rushing out of the still open front door. Either _he_ was _dreaming_, _those_ people were _certifiable_, or something _staidly_ wrong was occurring.

Barreling into what he _was_ able to recognize as the Truce Inn, Crono saw a man near the entrance dressed in what looked like soldier attire, but unlike the ones he would see patrolling the kingdom at times. _Regardless_, he figured that if _anyone_ would be able to set Crono straight once and for all, it would be _this_ man.

After breathlessly asking the soldier where he was and where the kingdom of Guardia was, Crono immediately felt nauseated the moment he'd heard the soldier haughtily reply,

"Are you _stupid_? **_This_** is the kingdom of Guardia! We're battling Magus's army."

The soldier stared expectantly at Crono for some sort of apologetic response, but when he did not receive one, pressed on with,

"You _did_ know that, right?" he inquired wearily, taking in the young man's peculiar attire. Crono could only manage a faint and slightly garbled "No" in response.

Everything still _looked_ like the kingdom of Guardia he'd grown up knowing, and yet at the same time there were _drastic_ deviations -- _namely_ the people and supposed year.

The soldier rolled his dark eyes heavenward and threw his arms into the air before turning away from Crono, muttering to himself,

"_Lovely_ . . . We _need_ more ignorant strangers around here . . ."

After receiving several more shocked and appalled reactions from others within the Inn he'd bothered to converse with, Crono was about to give up and leave when he'd overheard a heated conversation going on between two other soldiers stationed near the entrance.

"What a _relief_! They _finally_ found Queen Leene wandering up in the mountains!" gushed one of the soldiers to his comrade, who nodded in acknowledgment. "She must be glad to be home! The Queen has been through _a lot_! But, she _was_ babbling about the _oddest_ thing."

This news swiftly triggered Crono's intrigue to eavesdrop upon. The _Queen_? Of _Guardia_? How could that be possible? While he did not know much about the Guardia Royal Family history, Crono was at _least_ aware of the fact that Her Royal Majesty had been deceased for quite some time, and that only her _husband_, the King, currently resided as ruler.

Unable to refrain from butting in, Crono approached the two soldiers and asked what was going on.

"Everyone was _worried_! The King _freaked_ when the Queen took off," replied the second of the two soldiers, vaguely confused that the cardinal haired man before him apparently had not heard about the formerly tragic news of their ruler's disappearance. "We all thought _Magus_ had grabbed her. Thank _goodness_ she's safe!"

Just then, _another_ individual, a young man passing by decidedly invited himself into the conversation before Crono could make any sort of response.

"Magus's army destroyed Zenan Bridge, so the south continent is inaccessible," he darkly revealed after taking a generous swig of his mead, apparently ruling out the probability of the kingdom enacting any sort of counterattack, _had_ the one known as Magus kidnapped the Queen.

"Are _you_ a stranger here, too?" said a male voice from behind Crono suddenly, as the two soldiers and the young man continued on within their now shared conversation. Turning around, Crono took in the sight of an individual who was _indeed_ male, whose clothing was khaki in color overall -- save the bright orange vest that covered his chest, in addition to the equally orange boots that sheltered his feet.

"I'm Toma, the explorer," said the man kindly with a mustached smile, extending one citrus gloved hand out to Crono, while brushing aside a few stray locks of his brown hair (that was mostly wrapped within a khaki colored bandanna) with the other. "If you're buying, I'll tell you a story. How about it?"

Even though he thought it a bit rude of the older man to try to finagle him out of his money, Crono nonetheless gave a quiet "Sure" in reply. He figured that listening to his so-called story might be the only way to completely find out what was going on.

Moving over to the bar to purchase Toma his drink with the allowance his mother had given to him (that he hoped would be the same kind of currency the people of this time also used), Crono exhaled in relief to observe that his money was apparently at_ least_ good enough, if not indeed the same as these strangers.

Crono took a seat next to the appreciative-looking Toma after passing the cider beverage he had asked for over to him.

"Thanks!" said Toma in gratitude with a grin, taking a deep gulp before beginning his tale. "It's about the missing Queen. She disappeared while visiting that cathedral to the west, and . . ."

Toma trailed off as Crono interjected to inform him that the Queen had been _found_, according to the soldiers, causing the older man to gasp in surprise.

"Beg your pardon? _What_!? They_ found _her? _Never mind_ . . ." he murmured thoughtfully, taking another sip of his cider. "I was _sure _there was something _fishy_ about that cathedral . . ."

Pausing a moment, Crono said a quick goodbye to Toma before coming to the resolution to head to Guardia Castle to try to get an audience with the King and returned Queen, so that they might be able to help him in his plight.

After making his way through the forest that protectively encased the castle, Crono had at last emerged from it several minutes later and entered the castle.

"_Halt_! Who goes there?" shouted a soldier placed at the foot of a grand marble staircase directly before Crono.

"Check out that _hair_!" commented a second soldier at his post on the other side of the staircase, rudely pointing at Crono's spiky, flaming red hair. "Where're you _from_, son? Are you one of Magus's troopers?"

"_Hardly_! This kid _never_ would have made the cut! Show us your _stamp_ collection, son!" taunted the first soldier, causing Crono to frown in indignation.

The second soldier, practically suffocating from all of his laughter at his comrade's jeering, managed to usher forth,

"Har, har! Now _beat_ it, shrimp!"

Crono, _greatly_ annoyed, was about to open his mouth to plead with the two commanding men, when a strong and vaguely familiar female voice rang out from the top of the staircase.

"_Stop_ that at _once_!"

Startled, the soldiers whirled around and immediately ceased in their laughter, as they and Crono took in the sight of a beautiful, blonde haired young woman, adorned in an elegant white gown descending the stairs.

"_Queen Leene_!" gasped both soldiers simultaneously in abashment, instantly bowing in respect.

"_Show_ your _manners_! This is a _friend_ of mine!" reprimanded the apparent Queen Leene as she gazed past the men and locked eyes with Crono, which promptly caused his heart to skip a beat.

_He_ was a friend of _hers_? How was _that_ possible? Unless Lucca had already followed after him, and then met with the queen before he'd managed to, thereafter informing her of his presence. Knowing Lucca and her liking to plan ahead as well as need to take the initiative, Crono would not have put it past her to do (and would have been _tremendously_ thankful to her if she had).

Rising to their feet, both soldiers nodded in acknowledgment, before the first soldier hesitantly stated,

"But there's something _odd_ about him!"

At this, Queen Leene loomed over the two guards, and with narrowed, unappreciative green eyes, bellowed,

"You _refuse_ to obey _my_ **_orders_**!?"

Practically jumping completely out of their skins, the first soldier bowed in obedience before stammering,

"_Forgive_ me, my lady! Please enter, Sir!"

Crono could only look on in utter surprise at the ongoings, unable to speak as Queen Leene retreated back up the staircase without a word, and both soldiers enacted a complete one-eighty upon him.

"_Please_ pardon us! We _revere_ our Queen's guests!" apologized the second soldier with a sheepish smile as Crono began to slowly ascend the stairs.

"I_ envy_ you, whom the Queen calls _friend_!" muttered the first soldier with a tight grimace, eyeballing Crono with resentment shining forth from his eyes. "King Guardia the XXI is in the throne room. Mind your _manners_!"

Nodding slowly in understanding, Crono made his way up the rest of the stairs and straight into the throne room. Before him stood a regal looking man dressed in mainly red attire, smiling warmly in obvious gratitude down at him.

"Sir! I understand that _you_ are the one who saved my dear wife, the Queen!" said the King happily, as Crono approached and awkwardly bowed before him. "But can you tell me what happened? Leene's acting rather odd."

_Wait_ a second. Crono hadn't met the queen until mere _minutes_ ago. How could _he_ have been the one to rescue her, and why did her _husband_ seem to believe so?

As Crono was about to voice his confusion, King Guardia continued on.

"And she seems to have lost her coral pin, which is something she guarded with her life . . ." he trailed off in curiosity, tapping a slightly aged finger against his chin in thought. Snapping out of it, King Guardia lightly chuckled in dismissal.

"Forgive me! You must be tired. We can talk about this later. Please rest in the Knights quarters, downstairs, to the left."

With that, King Guardia took a seat upon his throne and gave a small wave to Crono, at the same time an old man with long, wispy white hair scowled in disapproval at his king's side.

"Hmmm . . ." he voiced gravely while Crono passed by him and was led away by a knight who immediately began to open up to him like some sort of floodgate.

"Just between us, the Chancellor's been acting _very_ strange lately," he said to Crono as discreetly as he could while leading the way to the Knight's quarters. "He's been sneakin' out at night . . . But, speaking of nut cases, I haven't seen the Queen's guard, that frog-thing, recently. Heard a spell turned him into a frog. Do you believe that? I think he's a spy!"

Having absolutely no idea as to what the knight was gossiping to him about, Crono awkwardly asked if he could instead be led to the Queen's chamber instead, so that he may have a brief audience with her before resting as suggested.

Narrowing his eyes at Crono a moment in interest, the knight was about to suggest against it when a young woman approached the two of them and informed him that the Queen was in fact waiting on Crono's presence.

Smiling sheepishly, Crono waved a quick goodbye at the knight and followed the woman up a flight of stairs that were near the entrance of the castle.

"The Queen married into the family ten years ago," she gushed cheerfully, commencing in her_ own_ form of causerie, making Crono briefly wonder if the servants around the castle did not have enough upon their plates to do. "She still looks so _youthful_! In fact, she looks even younger _now_ than on her wedding day . . ."

Crono could only nod in response, as he did not know a thing about this queen, and so could not offer up any sort of substantial comment that would suffice. Thankfully, he would not have had enough time to do so anyhow, for the young woman had suddenly opened a large wooden door and moved out of the way for him to pass on through.

Exhaling loudly before clearing his throat, Crono carefully made his way into the vast bedchamber and approached Queen Leene, who stood at her bed with her back facing him.

"Ah! _There_ you are," she said with an expectant smile after hearing Crono's footsteps from behind. "Please leave us. I need to talk to this individual."

Crono gave an embarrassed smile to the female attendants who were with the queen as she gave acknowledgment to them.

"Certainly, your Highness," one of the attendants replied before bowing to both Queen Leene and Crono and leaving the room.

Waiting until the two women had gone, Queen Leene returned her attention back onto the patiently waiting, although nervous Crono with a raised eyebrow and a suddenly serious expression spread across her fair visage.

"Come nearer, Sir," she firmly commanded, causing Crono's heart to beat faster behind his breastplate in increased nerves as he did what he was told.

Did she know what the servants were saying about him having saved her, and was now about to deliver onto him some sort of harsh punishment for the lie?

As Crono's mind began to race with visions of his impending doom, Queen Leene curiously began to giggle softly, her formerly stern expression instantly evaporating in the process.

"_Fooled _you, didn't I, Crono?" she inquired, continuing to chuckle gleefully. "It's _me_! But everyone calls me _Leene_!"

Crono's blue eyes widened in disbelief at the news and realization that Queen Leene was in fact his temporarily vanished new friend, _Marle_. How, or _why_ would the people throughout the entire castle believe that the queen they had seen and known everyday for the past decade was instead this young teenager?

As if Crono was not utterly befuddled before, now he was suddenly faced with trying to figure out yet _another_ mystery. At least, however, having found Marle was _one_ less worry he would have to be concerned about.

"I'm so relieved you're here!" raved the blonde tomboy before him, interrupting his congested thoughts. "We barely know each other, but somehow, I _knew_ you'd come for me . . ."

This announcement had caused Crono's cheeks to flush profusely with blood, watching Marle immediately turn around to face the stonewall behind her as the embarrassment was perhaps too great for _her_ as well. Crono stammered a bit as he struggled to find the right words to say in response; however, Marle thankfully saved him of the trouble as she turned back around and with a broad smile and said,

"Thank you, Crono!"

Suddenly, the candles that were keeping the bedchamber both warm and alight eerily blew out, causing the room to dramatically dim in the process. Crono instinctively placed a hand upon his wooden sword and gave a weary frown towards Marle before gazing around the room.

"S-something's wrong!!" she cried out in fearful alarm, wrapping her arms around herself. "W-what's happening!? It feels like . . . I'm being torn apart!"

Crono's eyes widened in petrified fear as he stood, paralyzed in front of a suddenly floating Marle, whose body became aglow in vibrant, shimmering white light.

"Help me, Crono! I'm scared!!" she cried out desperately, raising her hands up to her blonde head and clutched it. "Please . . . Crono . . . h-_help_ me!"

Crono, finally able to pry himself from his cemented spot, rushed forward to aid his friend, but was too late. In an instant and within a brilliant light did Marle vanish from sight, causing Crono's blood to ice over at the sight.

**.§.§.§.§.**

"Why won't she wake up? Do you think it's because the Heart went _wonky_ and somehow landed us here?"

"I don't know, Hay Lin. I don't even know where 'here' _is._ I just know that she _has _to wake up soon, because we have to find our way out and get back home."

"What would be the _point,_ even _if _we find an exit out of this seemingly endless forest, Cornelia? There's no 'home' to go back _to_ . . ."

Will began to lightly stir within her continued slumber while vaguely hearing what sounded like Cornelia and Hay Lin's voices. She presumed that the two women were surrounding her as they carried on what sounded like a very desperate conversation.

"_Look_! Will's waking up! Come on, Will. Come back to us," Will heard Hay Lin plead, lightly nudging her shoulder.

"Mmm . . ." softly groaned Will, slowly opening her brown eyes. Vision blurred, she could still make out the petite Asian girl's familiar visage, hovering worriedly over her own.

"Are you all right, Will? It looks like our trip into . . . _wherever_ this is has taken its toll upon you the most," thoughtfully observed Cornelia, seated at Hay Lin's side and resting a comforting hand upon her shoulder.

Will, blinking her eyes several times to better clear up her vision, looked about her surroundings and was surprised to see it so full of life.

_Wherever the Heart **has** taken us, it's definitely not Heatherfield anymore, based on how vibrant everything is_, she thought in curiosity, gazing up at the lush forest trees and green grass that enveloped the three women.

". . . What happened?" Will managed to ask hoarsely, groggily sitting up in her spot. "Where are Irma and Taranee, and . . . why aren't we in our Guardian forms anymore?"

"I don't know, Will. When the rest of us had woken up, we were back in our regular forms," explained Cornelia as she and Hay Lin helped their redheaded leader up onto her feet.

"And the others went on ahead to check out the area," added Hay Lin softly, brushing a stray strand of her now messy black locks away from her tired face. She still looked a bit worse for the wear, but Will was relieved to see that the younger girl had at least managed to stop crying.

_Which is definitely a good thing, because I don't think we can afford to have any distractions right now_, thought Will with a grimace, rubbing her forehead to lull her growing headache away.

"Well . . . we'd better go find them so that we can transform back and get out of here," she suggested with an exhale, right when Irma and Taranee had suddenly emerged from a pair of green bushes directly before the trio.

". . . Hey, Will -- it's good to see that you're awake and seem all right," said Taranee with a small, relieved smile spread across her face that was just as spent as everyone else's.

"Yeah, Will . . . Hey, listen, Taranee and I had managed to find what looks like a dirt trail that leads out of the forest -- _hopefully_, anyway," revealed an overtaxed sounding Irma as she stood beside Cornelia. While she did not look as though she had completely recovered from her tirade against the blonde before the lot of them had been sucked into the mysterious portal, the brunette was at the very least able to stand at her side.

Cornelia looked at Irma from the corner of her eye, taking note of the minuscule progress being made between the two of them and, not wishing to push the issue out of understanding and respect, gently cleared her throat before addressing Will.

"Well, now that everyone is awake and together again, we had _better _transform back into our Guardian forms and get out of this forest to find _some_ kind of civilization," she suggested, receiving simultaneous nods of united consensus from the other girls surrounding her.

Without a word, Will closed her brown eyes and commenced to summon forth the Heart of Candracar, at the same time that her comrades gathered around her in a circle with arms extended on either side of themselves.

". . . Come forth, Heart of Candracar, and grant us some of your power once more . . ." whispered the cardinal haired female while expecting to feel the familiar sensation of the mystical jewel pulsing within her palm, before at last emerging from it.

However, nothing ever happened.

Cracking one eye open, Will peered down at her right hand that was extended in front of her with utter perplexity.

"What's the matter, Will? Why didn't you summon the Heart?" worriedly asked Hay Lin as she and the others let their arms down and moved closer to their leader.

"I-I don't _know_, Hay Lin. I still feel it within me, but . . . it just won't come forth," replied Will shakily, pulling her Heart-wielding hand to her chest as though in comfort. "I wonder, though, if this means that we've lost the ability to use our powers . . ."

**-- End of Chapter 2  
**

* * *

**(A.N. Was going to continue and I have, but I decided not to because, to be honest, I currently don't care. I'll care later, as I'm already recovering from a bad run-in, but right now I don't care. LoL Plus, this chapter is about . . . 13 pages long, alone, but I really don't want to hear "It's too long" stuff again. Not now, anyway, when I'm blah. I know at least one person who thinks I'm "complaining" right now and maybe I am, but right now I don't care. So yeah. Chapter three will probably up a lot sooner than two, but . . . yeah.)**


	4. Chapter 3: The Queen is Gone 600 AD I

**Chapter 3: The Queen is Gone (600 A.D. first time) – Part One**

**By: Sokai**

**Disclaimer: **I, Sokai, do not claim ownership to the workings of W.I.T.C.H. -- I leave that honor up to Elisabetta Gnone. Nor do I own the extremely kick arse classic console role-playing game,Chrono Trigger. The glory of that honor forever goes to Square Co., Ltd. However, I can and DO claim to own this story and its inspired ideas FROM said series, although the original idea to cross the two worlds together came from LordofDarkness2099's story challenge.

Note: _OH, MY GOD!! I'M FINALLY BACK WITH AN UPDATE TO THIS STORY!!! LoL Wow! And the first update of 2009! HAPPY NEW YEAR, ALL!!_

_Yikes. Nearly three years since I'd last updated this story, I think. But it's cuz I'd gotten uninspired, since it didn't seem to have much interest from people. Now, ironically, it does/has, once its been fermenting, so to speak, for a while on here. LoL So, yep. I'm back with it, and hope you all enjoy the first half of the two parter chapter of "The Queen is Gone."_

_And please, be nice to me and give reviews to this thirteen pager, because it's my birthday tomorrow. HeHe_

_

* * *

_This chapter was created/written in January 2009.

* * *

The thought of being powerless within a possibly dangerous topographic point instantly produced a rather icy chill, that effortlessly careened down the spines of all five stranded and weary Guardians of the Veil.

Pausing for a moment, rubbing her bare, russet hued shoulders in self comfort, Taranee quietly asked, ". . . . Do you think that's true? That we might have lost our magical abilities, I mean? Maybe, we should. . . ." she trailed off, as she caught a look of understanding from each girl.

Without another word, the quintet lined up, side by side, and diligently extended out their hands in attempt to draw upon the innate elemental powers that lay active within each of them, regardless of a full onset transformation.

However, after several moments more had passed, and nothing had happened, Hay Lin was the first to speak.

"Wha . . . this can't be happening, you guys! We can't transform back into our Guardian forms, where we're the most _powerful!_ And _now_, we can't even manage to tap into our powers for even the most minuscule task, as we would on any _other_ day!" she cried in frightened hysterics, looking down at her pale, open palms with widened brown eyes. "T-this is _really_ bad! We really _have_ lost our powers! That means we won't even be able to defend ourselves while we're . . . _wherever_ this is!!"

While the petite, apparently _former_ Guardian of Air continued on within her frazzled state, although this time in silence, as she merely vigorously rubbed her hands together and fearfully looked about her surroundings, Cornelia, choosing instead to draw upon what little inner strength she had left within her, rather than plummet further into despair alongside her companions, calmly suggested, ". . . May . . . maybe our powers _aren't_ gone, Hay Lin. Maybe it's only because we're all tired and have been through _so_ much in the last hour and a half. . . ." she paused, squeezing her light blue eyes shut in silent reflection over just _how_ much all of them had been through and truly have lost . . . and all in such a short amount of time.

Their homes.

Their families.

Their former lives.

It was all too much to bear. . . .

Seeing that the taller girl could no longer keep up her projected resolve of strength, Will stepped forward and rested a gentle hand upon both Cornelia's and Hay Lin's shoulders in consolation and nodded lightly in understanding.

". . . It's true. We _have._ . . . A-and I mean, each of our powers _are_ strongly tied to our emotions, so perhaps . . . once we've gotten some rest, gotten our bearings and figure out where we all are and _why_, we could be able to transform back into our Guardian state once more," the redheaded Keeper resolved, her voice shaky despite her best efforts to remain as collected as possible, if only for her comrades' sake.

For she knew that, the moment any sort of emasculation might have been revealed to them, ultimate chaos would then ensue, and thus, then would they _truly_ be powerless.

_And I __can't__ let that happen, no matter how much I may wish to quit and give up right now_, thought Will to herself with vague granite, gazing upon her exhausted and shattered-appearing best friends surrounding her within the deep forest they had mysteriously arrived within minutes before. _If our loved ones really __are__ gone, we're all each of us has left. . . . And as their leader, it's up to __me__ to remain strong and keep this remaining family rallied together in order to keep moving forward. I just . . . wish I knew how to do it. . . ._

Irma, who had been the most quiet and seemingly distant of the group thus far, rubbed her forehead tensely for a spell, before gently waving her hand in a summoning motion towards her companions.

"Well . . . l-let's just first make it out of this forest first, then, and see if we can't find some sort of familiar landmark nearby or something," she softly remarked as she turned and began to lead the way, biting down upon her plush, pout lips thereafter, as though to stifle any sort of sob that might have wished to escape from them.

Of them all, it appeared as though the whilom Water Temptress was handling the girls' newfound predicament the hardest. And, if she had been questioned about it outright at that moment, perhaps she might have admitted it to be so.

_Because I was the one who had taken today so __lightly__, making jokes about 'six-six-six.' It's almost like . . . like my having done so had incurred the unforeseen wrath of whatever had enough strength and will to do . . . what it had to all of Heatherfield. . . ._ she silently ruminated with a strong, sorrowful grimace, the guilt over her previously "blahzay" attitude mounting as she quickened her pace ahead of her friends and temporarily vanished out of sight behind a large pair of shrubs. _If it would change things, I would give up my life to have mine and the others' families back. . . ._

"H-hey, Irma, slow down, okay? You and Taranee may be better familiar with the terrain because you'd gone ahead to look around earlier, but we should all still stick toge --" was all a cautious Hay Lin had managed, several paces behind her best friend alongside the rest of the other Guardians, watching the sole brunette briefly leave her sight from behind the woodyplants up ahead, before the four remaining women were effortlessly startled by a piercing, high pitched scream coming from within the same direction.

And, frighteningly still, it sounded precisely like the girl in question. . . .

"I-Irma!! _Irma!!_ What's happening??" Will was the first to voice, with terrified vigor, also the first to take off ahead of her remaining friends in a fevered sprint, following the sound of the horrified Water Guardian's shrieks.

". . . . H-Help!! _A-Aaaahhhh!!!!_" the quartet could all hear their endangered friend bellow out into the atmosphere in gross, bone chilling affliction, her voice eerily sounding more and more disconnected and echo-like.

"Irma, don't worry!! We're _coming!!_ We've got y --!" exclaimed Will in great alarm, her heart doing immense palpitations as her fear for the well being of one of her comrades swiftly elevated. She watched with widened eyes as Taranee suddenly rushed past her and the rest of the remaining girls, as she was the only one left within the group who was vaguely familiar with the newfound terrain.

The Fire Guardian stopped abruptly once the quartet reached a wooded clearing, Cornelia bringing up the rear, before they each began to turn in circles in order to get a better view of their surroundings, and hopefully spot the mysteriously vanished Water Guardian.

"_Irma!!_" Taranee was the first to holler out into the cool, crisp atmosphere, with her hands cupped to her face for better amplification, before the others had then followed suit. "Irma, where are you?? _Speak to us!!_"

"You guys, this is _not_ good! F-First, our powers, a-and now, _Irma!!_" cried Hay Lin, after she could no longer raise her voice any higher to continue calling out to her missing comrade and best friend. Her almond shaped eyes effortlessly brimmed with renewed tears, as she peered pleadingly upon each of her fellow Guardians. ". . . . W-What if . . . I mean . . . what i-if, because of the cliffs nearby here, s-she --"

"-- Did _not_ fall, and is going to be all right, because we're _going_ to find her, Hay Lin," promptly interrupted Cornelia, resting one hand upon the smaller girl's shoulder as she passed, before gently narrowing her light blue colored eyes while she began to survey the immediate area. She paused for a moment, staring at the small wooden bridge directly before the four of them in the near distance, before crouching down onto the soft ground on one knee. ". . . . From what I can tell, it doesn't look as though Irma had lost her footing and fallen off of the cliff's edge up ahead . . . and it doesn't look as though she was dragged away by anyone, either, since the surrounding earth, bushes and bridge there doesn't seem disrupted in any manner. . . ."

". . . . Having an Earth Guardian within our midst certainly has its perks," remarked Will in soft praise as she cautiously peered over the cliff side from where she stood, both her nerves and breathing having slowed down some. Although still quite fearful over the missing brunette's well being, she trusted Cornelia's observant insight, especially when concerning nature. "So, then . . . at least we know that, thank _God_, it doesn't appear as though she'd fallen over, since I can't see anything down there at all from up here, added to Cornelia's input. . . . The only thing left to assume, then, is that . . . if Irma _could_ have been kidnapped, after all -- Which is a more than easy feat against _any_ of us right now, since we're all both defenseless, as well as fatigued -- the perpetrator _must_ possess some sort of magical power of their _own_, because there isn't any sign of struggle or appearance at all. . . ."

"Do . . . do you really think that's possible?" pondered Hay Lin aloud with clasped hands in anxiety, a shiver running down her spine at the thought. "I mean . . . that's the _last_ thing we need right now. Our friend has gone missing, and we don't know where she might have been taken, _or_ where the heck _we've_ been taken by that weird portal thing, at that! _Now_, we have to also worry about rescuing Irma, without having our magic, against someone -- or _someones_ -- who _might??_"

Taranee, having been silent the longest, at last spoke.

"_Hay Lin!_ Calm down . . . _please_. . . . We're all _very_ scared and stressed right now, not to mention confused as to what is going on overall," she said. "I mean, we've all . . . that is . . . our families and homes, they're. . . ."

"We understand, Taranee . . . we do. . . . But . . . _we're_ still here. _We_ still have a chance at survival. And powers or no, we _will_ see this through and find Irma," avowed Will with a light furrow of her crimson brow. "We've already been awarded a stroke of good luck of some kind, given that the Heart of Candracar had managed to transport us to this place, where life is still apparently very much thriving. . . . And, if there really _is_ magic within existence here, then that means we might stand a chance at figuring out a way to get _ours_ back. . . ."

Cornelia nodded in agreement, rising to her feet and waving a hand over her shoulder towards her companions to beckon them to follow her, as she made her way warily over to the wooden bridge.

"Right . . . but if we _do_ stand a chance at finding Irma at all, we had better pick up the pace and get out of this forest, first things first -- _Especially_ before nightfall," she said with a momentary glance up towards the sky, to take note of the brilliantly shining sun's current position. "And, maybe there might be people or towns nearby who could help and tell us if _they'd_ seen anything or anyone suspicious very recently. Will's right, you guys; so long as we stick together and keep fighting . . . we can _do_ this. . . ."

Swelling with renewed motivation and bravery to press forward, the stranded Guardian of the Veil quartet, without another word, carefully began their trek across the bridge and further into the forest that was hopefully leading them within the right direction.

After several minutes had elapsed, having climbed down a series of various, thankfully, as well as conveniently placed rope ladders upon the numerous cliff and rock formations, the girls unanimously breathed a sigh of relief the moment each pair of eyes had laid upon a grand clearing within the near distance.

"I-I think that might be the exit, you guys!! We're almost there!" announced Hay Lin with a tired squeal, the first to finish climbing down the final ladder, before beginning to lightly jog on ahead. "And I think I can see what looks like . . . yeah! I think there might be a town or village not too far from here, too! Maybe that's where _Irma_ is!"

"I had a feeling there might be, since it's clear this mountain has been visited and passed through, quite possibly, many a time before _we'd_ arrived, judging by all of these ladders and bridges strategically laid about," deduced Taranee with an abrupt exhale of weariness, the second to finish her descent, with Cornelia and Will about to follow suit. "But, I wouldn't go too far, or get too relieved just yet, Hay Lin. We still don't know whether this new world is a friendly one . . . and without any way to readily defend ourselves, we could be sitting ducks for whatever may lie up ahead."

Nodding in slight agreement, the raven haired, pigtailed girl stopped within her place, just a few feet away from the group's presumable exit, before turning back to face the mocha skinned young woman formerly behind her.

"Good point, Taranee. . . . Although, not to jinx anything by saying so, but we _did_ manage to make it all the way down the mountain without any sort of incident. So, maybe . . . maybe our luck really _is_ changing for the bett --"

"-- Hay Lin, watch _out!!_" cried Will in alarm, leaping off of the rope ladder and managing to perform a sloven-like somersault, before taking off towards both the now frightened Air Guardian and Fire Goddess. For, behind the petite saffron hued young woman, rolling swiftly towards her appeared a mysterious, lime green colored . . . _ball??_

"W-What?? _Ahh!!_" shrieked Hay Lin in amplified terror, as she began to whirl around to see what had the other girls so spooked, themselves; however, she was swiftly knocked over onto the ground by both Will _and_ Taranee, just in time to miss the curious circular projectile's path of impact.

Cornelia, meanwhile, so caught up within the sudden chaos that immediately began to unfold right before her eyes, remained glued within her spot, fingers still clamped tightly upon the rope ladder. She had seen a lot of unique looking creatures while traveling to and fro the world of Metamoor over the last year and a half, and swiftly faced off against them as the Guardian of Earth.

However, _this_ one was certainly peculiar, indeed. . . . At least, she believed it, this "ball," was a living creature, anyhow, as her blue eyes watched it suddenly stop rolling and place itself in front of her trio of companions who still lay, scattered, upon the ground.

_What am I doing?? I've got to do something to help! __Now__! _thought the blonde in silent reproving, after at last having snapped out of her awed daze. Unbeknownst to her, however, Cornelia was about to face a few problems of her own, as right when she was about to let go of the ladder and rush over to help out her friends fend off the greenish sphere that was now immobile, a bit menacingly, before them, she suddenly felt a pair of tiny, cold and calloused hands gripping at each side of her neck.

"L-Look!! Something's just jumped onto Cornelia from behind and is attacking her!!" breathed Hay Lin in affect and point of her slender finger, before doing her best to climb back onto her feet as swiftly as possible alongside both Will and Taranee.

"W-What _is_ that thing?? Moreover, what is _this_ thing?? I-Is it even _alive??_" queried Taranee within a mixture of growing consternation and perplexity, trying to split her attention between the present issue that continued to stand its ground before the three women, acting almost like a conscious blockade of sorts, and to her remaining friend, who was struggling feverishly against what looked like a bluish . . . _blur_ that had securely wrapped itself upon her back.

Refusing to waste any more precious time, Will immediately settled back into her leadership role and began delegating orders.

"Forget about what they are or _aren't!_ You guys just try to do your best to get rid of this . . . _thing_, while _I_ go help Cornelia!!" she commanded fiercely with a deep frown, managing to dash past the yellow-green orb before it could attack, and towards the sunlit haired girl in the near distance.

If that spherical object really _was_ alive and an actual threat, it didn't seem to mind that the redhead had easily gotten away from it just then, as it remained within its spot before the remaining Fire and Air summoners.

Apparently thinking along the same lines as their leader, both Hay Lin and Taranee gave a silent nod of understanding towards one another, before splitting up and running away, on either side of the "ball," in hopes that it would repeat its same actions from just mere moments before, and not bother to move from its spot once again.

However, just as Hay Lin had managed to pass by it without so much as a flinch, Taranee let out a sharp yelp of pain and surprise, as the mysterious entity swiftly leaped from off of the ground and catapulted itself straight into her abdomen, knocking her over and back onto the cold ground.

Seeing immediate stars, the naturally inquisitive young woman instinctively curled up into a ball, herself, having felt as though she'd just been hit by an oncoming cannonball. White, searing hot pain immediately began to careen itself throughout her entire body, while she continued to lie upon the soft earth in agony.

"Taranee!!" screeched Hay Lin, stopping within her tracks, away from her former path of direction towards the redhead and blonde, and back towards the injured girl, who still lay crumpled and helpless upon the ground. . . .

Meanwhile, Will had, at that same moment, at last managed to successfully tear what, to her, appeared to be bluish, imp-like sort of creature from off of Cornelia's back, and blindly hurled it towards a row of sunset colored bushes to the girls' immediate right.

"C-Cornelia! Are you all right??" she asked in fevered concern, both she and the slightly taller girl next to her panting heavily, as Cornelia hunched over, gingerly rubbing at her now bruised neck. "Can you make it? Because it looks like Taranee and Hay Lin _really_ need our help!"

"Y-Yeah, I think so, thanks . . . but it feels as though that little . . . _whatever_ the hell it was had managed to do a number on my neck and scratched it up pretty bad," muttered the Gaian Mistress bitterly, pulling back her hand away from her neck to give both she and Will the clear view of the crimson, warm liquid that daintily spotted her fingertips. "Bastard came out of _no_ where. . . ."

Will briefly nodded in concurrence, before securing a firm hand around the slightly injured girl's arm, to help straighten up her posture once more and lead her back over to the fallen Taranee and frazzled Hay Lin . . . who was, at that moment, within the midst of trying to do her best to dodge the ball-like monster's attacks in the same manner it had enacted before.

"We'll worry about all of that later! Let's just hurry up and get as far away from this mountain before any more of these things come back!" said the redhead, releasing Cornelia's arm before running back towards Hay Lin. She waved her arms straight into the air to risk catching the other girl's attention, long enough to let her know of her currently brewing intentions. "Hay Lin! Get out of the way! I've got it!! You and Cornelia, go help Taranee!"

"_No_, Will! This little rolling freak's _mine!!_" cried Hay Lin with the most conviction she'd harbored all day, and a deep, frustrated scowl set upon her flax countenance. With a swift raise of her hand to stop her leader and friend from coming any closer, she abruptly surprised the cardinal locked young woman and everyone else present, by performing a swift roundhouse kick to the greenish fiend gliding through the air straight towards her at that moment.

And, although slightly sloppy in execution, primarily due to fatigue more than anything else, the move had nonetheless gotten the job done at last, as Hay Lin's dirtied, sneakered foot had promptly connected with the side of what curiously looked like a pair of eyeballs and a face that had been curled up tightly.

With a loud shriek of pain, the lime green, moving sphere suddenly unfurled itself at long last to reveal its pointed ears, short arms and legs, as well as flabby underbelly to the quartet of young women, before the impact of the Air Guardian's blow had sent it sailing, backwards, into the row of trees in the distance.

For just a moment, no one could say a word, as each girl, including Hay Lin, herself, were surprised at the smallest girl's swift thinking and nimbleness. With a small, but growing lopsided simper despite her ongoing, pulsating pain, Taranee let out a sharp cough before speaking.

". . . . Too bad you couldn't have done that _before_ that thing had nearly knocked every last bit of air I have inside of me, Hay Lin, but . . . thanks," she lightly jested in good humor and gratitude, as she allowed both Will and Cornelia to help her up from off of the ground. "Since when do you know any form of martial arts??"

Hay Lin's cheeks instantly grew a more rosier, darker shade at this, scratching the back of her head in awkwardness as she looked from friend to friend before her.

"Um . . . since maybe like, the end of last summer? I don't really know a whole lot yet, _or_ think I'm any good, but my grandma was beginning to teach me and said that I was a quick study, nonetheless," she sheepishly explained. "She told me that she wanted me to learn everything that _she_ had as a former Air Guardian, herself, and that _included_ martial arts. . . . Even though I've honestly never really kept up with my practicing, or thought that I would ever really need to use it, since I instead had my powers as my main offense . . . I'm certainly glad to know the bits and pieces that I do now. . . ."

_Who knew that Grandma would be __right__ in wanting to teach me a few things?_ she pondered silently as an afterthought, abruptly averting her brown eyes away from the rest of the girls, as she then began to feel newfound tears forming within them at the reflection upon her beloved grandmother, who was now most certainly lost to her along with the rest of her family. _If only I could have taken it a bit more seriously, or I at least could have thanked her properly for the lessons. . . ._

Sensing her former upset returning and growing within her once more, Cornelia carefully moved away from Taranee's side, and moved to stand by Hay Lin's, clasping her hand with one of her own, while using the other to gingerly press down upon the scrape that was still lightly bleeding upon her otherwise unmarred neck.

"I'm sure both she and the rest of your family would be very proud of you right now, Hay Lin . . . trust me," she said with a weak, although warm smile. "I know that _we_ all are. . . . And now, you can act as our official bodyguard until we have managed to figure out a way to get our powers to work again."

For the first time in what felt like ages, the bewildered and energy depleted Guardians simultaneously let out a short, but honestly uplifting laugh at this, before moving closer together so that both Will and Hay Lin could help Taranee, who had one hand draped around her stomach in cradled protection, make it down the rest of the mountain, so that Cornelia could properly tend to her own wound.

"I think that, _instead_, from now on, we should all try to keep a better watch of each other's backs until we've found Irma," said Will after their laughter, almost delirious in nature, had effortlessly died down, her left hand wrapped securely around one side of her best friend's waist, while Hay Lin's right arm enfolded around the other side on Taranee's left. "Something tells me this is going to get _a lot_ more trying before a silver lining might be shown to us, with probably even _more_ of . . . whatever those creatures were, popping up along the way, as well."

"Let's just hope that wherever Irma is or might be being held, _she_ won't bump into any of them," said Cornelia, before tearing a piece of the bottom of her blue sundress off to use an active bandage for her injury, instead of continuing to use her hand.

As the Guardians at last exited the mountain area, each girl breathed a heavy sigh of relief for having managed to do so safely without further incident. Limbs now burning within the desperate onslaught of fatigue, the girls' eyes instantly lit up at the sight of a small, but notable village within the near distance.

"Huh . . . looks like you _were_ right, Hay Lin; it _was_ a town you saw nearby. Good eye," complimented Taranee with a small wince as she inhaled slowly, lightly rubbing her stomach she was confident was now most assuredly beginning to bruise. "Thank God for that, too, because I definitely need to lie down for just a little bit, before we continue on to look for Irma. . . ."

"I think we could _all_ use a brief rest, Taranee, after everything we've been through today," remarked Will with a small incline of her crimson colored head, taking in another, deep inhale of the fresh, cool air blowing through her hair. "But, we'll have to make it as short as possible, if we want to keep up with whomever might have taken Irma. I would honestly leave you behind with either Cornelia or Hay Lin to watch over you, while _I_ went on to go after her, but after what just happened back in those mountains, I'm even more certain we should remain as a unit. . . ."

"Yeah, no matter _how_ seemingly innocent or inviting this little village area may appear. . . ." trailed off Cornelia with a narrowing of her blue eyes, the first to take a step forward and resume her walking, a clothed hand still pressed securely against the back of her neck. "But, the way the architecture looks, so medieval like, it sort of reminds me of something we'd see back in Metamoor. . . . You don't think that maybe the Heart had somehow transported us to another part of that world, some place we've never been to before? I mean, it _is_ a pretty big world, after all. . . ."

Each girl paused a moment to reflect upon the blonde's hypothesis. It, just like anything else within their particular lives, they've noticed, was certainly possible. There honestly still was so much about Metamoor and its topographical make up they had yet to discover, and being that the majority of their focus and energy had always been battling within the world's capital, Meridian, and reclaiming it within Princess Elyon's good name, there was honestly no telling what else lay out there. . . .

"Well, if it _is_ a part of Metamoor, it's obviously a part that Phobos's evil has yet to spread to, being that everything is still so vibrant and beautiful -- Well, with the exception of those . . . _monsters_ back upon that mountain," noted Will after several moments of silent reverie had passed between the four. It was true. While every part of the land within Meridian was so dull, dark, and dank -- _Including_ the sky, with little to no distinction between the passing of day and night -- _here_, there was absolute brilliance all around.

Plush, full bodied and nearby forests housed gaily singing birds and other currently vocal animals; a bright, shining sun that beamed down warmly upon each Guardian and was unobstructed by the cloudless, true blue sky; and the continually fresh, now salty sweet smell of air that gently kissed each of their cheeks as it blew in from the vast, surrounding crystalline ocean.

Wherever within Metamoor this land happened to be, it was obviously _well_ away from Prince Phobos's attainable grasp . . . at least, for the time being.

Suddenly, Hay Lin let out a small gasp of honest surprise, causing all three of her remaining comrades to immediately whirl around in the process, now on guard.

"Guys, _look!_ Over there! It's a _castle! _That means that the village up ahead is a part of a _kingdom!_" the pigtailed girl explained with a minuscule, embarrassed smile for having alarmed her friends, watching them each calm down a bit before looking within her extended finger's direction to their right, away from the shoreline.

There, surrounded by a plethora of forest trees and two separate mountains as its backdrop in perfect, geographical protection, was a majestic, chivalric looking castle that was russet and crimson in color, just like its nearby village.

It was now the girls' turn to pant upon taking in the impacting sight, each taking a mindless step forward.

"Wow . . . for a monster infested, apparent kingdom, it's . . . almost breathtaking and humbling to look at," remarked Cornelia with a faint, but thoughtful smile, using her free hand to better shield her eyes from the sun's ongoing rays. "It's certainly a lot nicer than _Phobos's_ castle, anyway -- Or at least, his _usurped_ castle, that is. . . . I wish Elyon could see this. . . ."

"Well . . . once we figure out precisely where in Metamoor this is and after we've liberated Meridian for the Princess, we can bring her back here one day," assured Will in softness, before clearing her throat and beginning to carefully lead Taranee, this time without Hay Lin's assistance, along the dirt trail that led into the nearby village. "In the meantime, let's get you and Taranee some proper bandages or something to better treat your wounds from one of these establishments, and maybe something cool to drink for the rest of us. . . ."

"Hopefully we won't be met with any sort of problems with these people, kingdom or no, especially for the way we're dressed," chimed in Hay Lin with a small grimace, as she and the blonde beside her began to follow after their friends, looking down at her slightly torn, black colored corset blouse and jeans. "That always seems to be such an eyeopener for some of the Rebels whenever we arrive in Meridian prior to transforming. . . ."

The quartet continued on, down the vaguely steep, earthy path and into the village without another word, although the thought nonetheless lingered within each of their minds as apprehension mounted because of it. Throughout all of the ongoing commotion, it hadn't honestly yet occurred to the girls, until then, that how they were presently dressed might become a possible deterrent for the locals there, as it quite often was for those within Meridian.

_Hopefully it won't be too much of an issue, though,_ thought Will, as she and Taranee were the first to arrive in front of what looked like a pub.

"Well . . . here goes nothing," the redhead murmured to her surrounding companions, before the quartet, absolutely defeated in spirits, gathered up what little vigor they had left, and unanimously entered the oldened establishment.

**

* * *

**

There Crono continued to stand, utterly paralyzed with both fear and profound shock, as he practically bore a hole straight through the stone castle wall behind where Marle had once stood not moments before, adorned within a regal white gown, before inexplicably vanishing from plain sight.

A minuscule part of him began to reason, in dual slight comfort as well as growing insanity, that if he would just remain within his spot, unmoving and with great diligence for just a while longer, then perhaps the young blonde would return to him once more.

After all, Marle had disappeared without warning; why couldn't the reverse occur, as well? And besides, it wasn't as though Crono's mind was froth with any _other_ ideas in regards to getting his new friend back, yet _again_ -- Especially before anyone within the castle began to notice whom they all curiously continued to believe was their beloved queen had gone missing once more, and in such a short amount of time, at that.

And, unless this Queen Leene harbored quite the taxing habit of absenteeism more often than not, Crono would have quite a lot of questions to answer, from the King (or, more dangerously, the King's _guards_) quite soon, as, by now, the entire kingdom was currently well aware that the redhead was the last one to share a private audience with his wife.

Heart immediately jumping straight into his throat at that particular thought, Crono at last unglued his booted feet from the lavish, royal rug, pivoted around with vast swiftness and began to hightail it out of Queen Leene/Marle's bedchamber.

The red haired, novice rescuer had nearly fallen straight onto his backside and almost emitted a boisterous curse in alarm, once his eyes met with the two chambermaids who had been within the Queen's quarters prior to Crono's arrival, waiting patiently just a few feet from the large wooden door.

Great. Apparently, there would be no easy escape of any kind for the young lad, as his insides struggled to remain calm and collected as he slowly approached the royal attendants.

Softly clearing his throat, Crono forced as steady a smile as he could then manage, nodding in acknowledgment towards both females as they'd turned to face him in kind.

". . . . Did you notice anything odd about the Queen?" queried the taller chambermaid to Crono's left in a hushed, although eager voice, both she and her fellow companion inching a bit more closely to the male newcomer and causing his naturally tawny hued cheeks to immediately flush in the process.

Apparently, not even being no more but several paces away from their monarch's sleeping quarters could nor _would_ dissuade part of the royal staff from continuing on within their ostensibly treasured gossip. . . .

Unable to find his voice quite yet, due to the surprising turn of events not but a few moments before, Crono could only weakly shake his head in misleading response, secretly knowing full well of how much of a gross understatement the slender chambermaid's inquiry truly was.

"_If you only knew the __half__ of it,"_ was what the crimson haired youth yearned to blurt out right then, provided his vocal patterns would soon return, and if he could trust that these divulging, although seemingly harmless women would not to do him in.

". . . . Okay, if you say so," said the first lady-in-waiting with undeniable chagrin, her gray colored eyes promptly downcast and shoulders slumped in defeat, as she backed away from the teenager. Her shorter, a bit frumpier and vaguely older looking comrade, however, did nothing of the sort.

Just inches away from Crono did she remain, intently eyeballing his form as though her brown eyes were some sort of enchanted device that could see straight through his calm façade. After a few moments of increased discomfort, primarily and undoubtedly upon Crono's part, alone, the evidently suspicious woman at last spoke.

". . . . Has she dismissed you _already?_" she cross-examined with an incredulous air, eyes narrowing into near slits while continuing to hold their well-founded gaze upon the poor boy. "You were _polite_, of course?"

Feeling a faint, but growing cool sweat beginning to permeate from the top of his forehead, silently giving great thanks to the Heavens Above that his hair was long enough in the front to conceal such occurrence from his newfound interrogator, Crono could only briskly nod in response to the royal attendant before him, before she immediately continued on.

"You didn't do anything . . . _funny_, did you?" the fair haired woman pumped with a slight cock of her head to the side, and an accusatory raise of her right eyebrow. Crono could have honestly laughed at the display, as the first, younger looking lady-in-waiting suddenly mimicking her companion's actions right at that moment was quite comical . . . had it not been so _insulting_.

After all, while it could (and has, courtesy of Lucca) be said that he was not without his own fair share of resounding faults, Crono knew, full on, that he was at least a proper gentleman, true and true. And so, for this young woman, this complete _stranger_, to charge him of having been potentially fresh with the queen of his beloved country (or so he believed, anyhow), was far more than he could take.

Forgetting himself and his previous anxieties for the moment, Crono sucked in his breath sharply before letting out a resounding _"Of course not!"_ to the unsuspecting chambermaid, who, alongside her fellow comrade, looked dreadfully taken aback and red in the face with abashment.

For a split second or two, the young redhead felt painfully embarrassed and surprised alongside the two women before him, who were now positively mum. If he was such a self-acknowledged gentleman, then how could he have been able to snap so violently at the woman -- _Any_ woman, for that matter -- lewd insinuation or no?

Especially when it was blatantly obvious that that particular woman cared a great deal for her female monarch, and was merely checking to be certain that Crono, a newcomer within their midsts, had not taken advantage of their kindness in any manner.

Knowing the mental scolding and torture his mind (and perhaps from even his _mother_, if word ever somehow got out and trickled down to her neck of the woods), Crono was about to reopen his mouth, this time in a far more gentler fashion in order to apologize to both women for his outburst, when a cool, strong hand suddenly, although gently clasped his shoulder from behind.

Whirling around in surprise, Crono's cool blue eyes widened immediately at the unexpected, duly unwanted presence of one of the many knights stationed around the castle and he had crossed paths with not too long before.

This was it.

He was done for.

Surely, this _far_ more equipped, muscular and skillful man-at-arms was now about to thoroughly run the redhead clean through for his harsh and disrespectful behavior towards the Queen's ladies-in-waiting . . . however, not before first annihilating him completely for the figurehead's _second_ inexplicable disappearance that day, as Crono had previously feared.

But, nothing of the sort had happened. . . .

In fact, about the only sort of malice currently emitting from the taller, older man was that of vexation, which seemed to be more so directed towards the continually flustered female attendants than to anyone else.

". . . . I grow _so_ tired of the gossip around here!" said the silver armored knight with a tired huff, face crinkled within aggravation, as his steely blue eyes looked over Crono's head and straight towards the two chambermaids, who now gazed back at the man with profound indignity.

Rare silence then settled upon the antiquated, reverberated stone hall for just a moment, before a flurry of newfound, heated arguments suddenly erupted between the three royal employees, having evidently completely forgotten all about the mysterious traveler.

Taking this as good a sign as any to get while the getting was good, Crono, without another word, swiftly crept away from the feuding trio and fled towards the descending staircase up ahead. He absolutely refused to stop running, _or_ look back until he was completely out of Guardia Castle, and far away from anyone who might be able to tie him to the strange occurrence within Queen Leene, or Marle's bedchamber.

A deep, bothersome frown began to darken his otherwise handsome features as the cardinal locked young man continued down the stone staircase at a rapid rate. He needed time to think. Time to properly try to map out and piece together what had happened to the young blonde, and how in the world he would manage to get her back.

Although no solutions were yet dawning upon him, as he continued to ruminate over each of them, of one thing in particular Crono was absolutely, and surprisingly certain: No matter what or how long it would take, he was _going_ to find Marle, and bring her back. . . .

_First_, however, he was going to need a little help in doing so. From someone very intuitive and handy with good solutions. . . .

Someone like --

"_Crono!_"

Crono immediately, and finally skidded to an abrupt stop once he'd at last left the long staircase, the moment his blue eyes unexpectedly met the familiar periwinkle of _Lucca's_. . . .

Speak of the Devil.

A small smile of amusement began to creep its way onto the lengthy young man's tawny face, as he watched the tiny girl hunched over before him, with her hands upon her knees and cheeks aflame from obvious fatigue.

Although it was a bit comical, seeing how out of breath his best friend currently was (and usually would be quite easily, as aspects of the physical nature was not so much her forte, in contrast to that which was technical), Crono was also quite relieved to see her then, and that she had evidently followed after him . . . just as she'd stated she would.

". . . You're okay!" huffed Lucca in between sharp gulps for air, her mauve tinted head still met towards the stone castle floor. Her slim shoulders raised up and down, as she took another moment to gather a few more inhales, before blindly speaking to her friend once more. "Did you find the girl?"

Crono couldn't help but wince slightly the moment that question had been posed, as he knew it would not be remotely easy explaining everything that had transpired between he and Marle earlier on -- Especially since he was well aware that Lucca would undoubtedly bite his head off and view the entire situation as his own fault, as she traditionally would whenever things would go wrong over the last decade or so the two have been friends.

But, given that he would need to rope the fiery genius into lending her assistance in finding the missing blonde, Crono went on ahead and told Lucca the entire debacle _anyhow_ . . . although with a bit preserved caution, that would hopefully soften the blow. . . .

No go.

"_Gone??_ Whadd'ya _mean_ she's _gone??_" thundered Lucca in utter stupefaction, quite the rarity for her, as she instantly straightened her posture to stare, wide-eyed, at a very sheepish looking Crono. Several castle guards and attendants continuing to pass throughout the many halls paused a moment to gaze upon the fierce young woman, causing the redhead's face to grow several shades darker in color from continued embarrassment.

After uttering several apologies and words of assurance that he was well on his way to go after Marle, Crono was cut off abruptly by a now, suddenly much _calmer_ Lucca, as though having just experienced an epiphany of sorts, her brows deeply furrowed in thought from behind her large, oval shaped glasses.

"Hmm . . . it's just as I thought," she murmured softly, more so to herself, as she slowly reached up to readjust the broad spectacles, her soft colored eyes curiously ablaze with continued thought. "I _knew_ I recognized her! And this looks _identical_ to the castle in _our_ time!"

As much as Crono admired his childhood friend's vast intellect and know-how, he often found himself vexing Lucca's frequent "thought train sessions," as she would sometimes fondly refer to them, as he was never usually one for being able to hop on and keep up . . . especially when Lucca would not bother to give a moment's pause without continuing on within her slew of verbal wonders.

". . . . I'll bet they mistook that girl for her _ancestor_. . . ." Crono could hear Lucca fervently gush once he'd left his own thoughts, and frowned deeply in perplexity at her statement. None of what she had been saying thus far was yet making _any_ sense to him, and it was becoming increasingly frustrating_!_

"_Our time?"_ Of _course_ they were still within their own time of 1000 A.D.! Crono was still pretty certain of _that_, at least, as anything else simply did not make much sense. . . . Well, granted, the constant mention of the Queen _was_ still a bit puzzling to him, he silently admitted, but perhaps the King had recently remarried, perhaps even _today_, in honor of the Millennial Fair.

Not being one to keep up with the steadily changing news of the Royal Family, it was quite possible he'd missed that particular memo, after all.

Crono let out a heavy sigh, rubbing the back of his neck, as he hurriedly made a request of his friend to cease speaking in riddles and simply be direct with him for whatever it was she was trying to convey.

With a roll of her eyes and slight smirk, Lucca took a step forward and gently slapped her neighbor's forehead, before doing as he'd asked.

"You see, she's a member of the royal family in _our_ time! She's _Princess Nadia!_" she revealed with dramatic satisfaction laced within her voice for having figured out the true identity of their mysterious new friend. To further in her triumph, Lucca watched with delight as Crono's eyes nearly buffed out of their sockets, while his entire face practically stretched beyond its limit due to the utterly shocked expression he'd bestowed upon her just then.

Crono felt as though his legs were suddenly made of one of his mother's specialty bowls of spiced pudding, as his mind began to swim with so many thoughts and questions all at once.

This could not be so. Lucca _had_ to be wrong . . . well, as close to it as possible, anyway, given that she never usually was.

But, _still!_

Marle, the girl he had innocently come across at the Millennial Fair earlier that morning (and, possibly found to be quite the attractive catch, whether he was ready to openly admit that to himself, or not) was actually Princess Nadia??

_The_ Princess Nadia, of the Guardia Royal Family??

There _had_ to be some sort of mistake. After all, what would _she_ be doing hanging about the square, where mainly the _common folk_ frequented, _especially_ unattended and within the traveling clothes she'd been adorned in?

As it was to Crono's understanding, princesses were merely supposed to always look pretty within their gowns and array of jewels, and were most _assuredly_ full of themselves . . . not down-to-earth, sweet and mellow the way Marle had been.

And, most importantly, if she were truly the Princess, then why would she have even given someone like _Crono_ the time of day, let alone wish to tour the entire fair's activities with him?  
It just simply did not add up. . . .

Seeing that her companion clearly needed some time to regain his composure, Lucca gently patted Crono's shoulders in comfort as she began to explain her theory (or, rather, what she was most certain to be fact).

"Marle, that is, _Princess Nadia_, is a _descendant_ of Queen Leene!" the lilac haired teenager started with a knowing smile, giving a faint nod of affirmation towards Crono, as he gave her a look of renewed disbelief. "Queen Leene has been _kidnapped_. . . . As I recall, someone was supposed to have saved her. But history has been _changed!_"

Feeling his mind becoming a little less hazy, Crono chanced an inquiry to the petite girl right then, wondering what exactly did she mean by history having been changed.

Because, then _that_ would mean that . . . somehow, someway, Lucca's new transporting device really _had_ brought the two -- No, _three_, including the missing Marle, back in time!

Which would _also_ mean that . . . everything about Lucca's hypothesis _was_ the truth, after all!

Crono thought that he could faint at any moment, now that his mind at last allowed him to completely swallow and take in all that had been happening to him; however, seeing nothing soft to break his fall, or any chairs to sit in, he promptly made his way over to a nearby wall to support his temporarily weakened state upon, while listening to the rest of Lucca's condensed "history lesson."

". . . . Marle looks so much like Leene, that they probably called off their search when she appeared here," she continued with a small frown, placing a lightly clenched hand to her chin, as she pivoted her body around to face the redhead's new position. Her soft features suddenly darkened then, immediately catching Crono's attention for it, as the two locked eyes to share within a disquieting gaze. ". . . . But if the _real_ Queen is killed . . . Marle will simply disappear. . . ."

At this, Crono instantly catapulted himself away from the stone wall, startling Lucca in the process, as she let out a brief gasp, before waving a hand to calm him down. Being his best friend, she was already well aware that the crimson haired young man was beginning to develop an interest within the Princess of Guardia, and that the feelings were quite possibly mutual.

So it was of no surprise to the sagacious youth that Crono was taking the news of Marle's potential write-off from history, as it were, more than personal, and was clearly itching to charge off into the unknown to rescue her.

It was almost . . . charming, in a way.

_Suddenly, Mr. Pinhead's all grown up . . . well, __sort__ of. He's falling in love for the first time, from what I can tell, anyway_, mused Lucca with an affectionate simper, as she silently studied her longtime comrade's determined resolve with proud eyes, before moving to rest both hands upon his shoulders.

"There might still be time. If we can save Leene, history as we know it _should_ remain unchanged!" she delivered with soothing confidence, which both knew served well in calming a presently jittery Crono a tad at that moment.

Lucca gave a quick, reassuring nod before continuing, backing away from the boy to fold her arms across her chest in deeper thought. ". . . . Something _must_ have happened to the Queen in this era. As a result, Princess Nadia ceases to exist! _Hurry!_ We have to find the _real_ Queen!"

Suddenly and without another word, the outspoken intellect broke out into a swift sprint, back the way she'd came, and began to lead the way towards the castle's exit. With a fleeting thought of concern and silent prayer on the missing Marle's behalf, Crono promptly gathered up every ounce of courage and faith he harbored within him, as he quickly took off after his friend . . . with hopes of successfully finding the whereabouts of the _true_ queen.

**-- To Be Continued**

* * *

**(A.N. YES!! C'EST FINI!! Well, part one, anyway LoL And just in time for my birthday tomorrow. Yay! Wow...I'm gonna be 25....Can't believe it.... I remember posting an update to one of my other stories, and I was on about how I was gonna be 22, then 23.... Time flies! HeHe Know what you all can give me as a gift?? Lots of very nice, supportive reviews for this story! Woo woo! HeHe**

**Anyway! For those who've never played this game or don't remember, those nasty little buggers that attacked the Guardians in Truce Woods were that stupid Blue Imp and Roly, that come out when you're trying to leave the forest...bastards.... LoL And since I'd already written the imp attacking Crono in the previous chapter, with its stupid kick move to your shins it does during battle, I thought I wouldn't repeat myself and just had Will chuck it into the woods LoL **

**What else...can't think of anything else. I know there was more, but I can't remember now. Ah well! LoL Hope you enjoyed it, stay tuned for the exciting second half, when the Guardians and Time Traveling Heroes finally meet! Oh! And review! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MEEEEEEEEEEE...the 15th, anyway....LoL)**


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